All-Round Afridi and a Late Collapse See Pakistan Through to Super Four
In a match overshadowed by off-field drama and a spirited challenge from an underdog opponent, Pakistan secured its place in the Asia Cup Super Four with a hard-fought, 41-run victory over the UAE. The win, however, was far from convincing and did little to mask the batting frailties that have plagued the team throughout the tournament. After being rattled by a superb display of pace bowling from the UAE, Pakistan was rescued first by a gritty fifty from Fakhar Zaman and then by an explosive all-round performance from Shaheen Shah Afridi, whose late-innings cameo and crucial breakthroughs with the ball ultimately proved to be the difference.
A Day of High Drama, On and Off the Field
The match began an hour late, a delay caused by the high-stakes brinkmanship between the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and tournament officials over the "handshake" controversy from their previous game. When play finally commenced, Pakistan seemed to have left their fire and fury in the boardroom, producing a timid and scratchy start with the bat. They limped to just 17 for 2 in the first four overs, completely rattled by the UAE's pace attack.
The star of the show for the UAE was fast bowler Junaid Siddique, who delivered a masterful spell to become the tournament's leading wicket-taker. He struck at both the beginning and the end of the innings, varying his pace and length to claim four crucial wickets and keep the powerful Pakistani batting lineup in check for long periods. He was ably supported by Simranjeet Singh, who punctured the middle order with three wickets of his own.
Rescued by Fakhar and Afridi
With their top order failing once again, the responsibility of building a defensible total fell to the senior batsman, Fakhar Zaman. He held the innings together with a determined, if not entirely fluent, half-century, scoring 50 from 36 balls. However, even with his contribution, Pakistan was struggling at 110 for 7 in the 17th over, staring at the prospect of a well-below-par score.
It was then that Shaheen Shah Afridi, for the second consecutive match, came to the rescue with the bat. In a stunning display of lower-order power-hitting, he smashed an unbeaten 29 from just 14 balls. He took 18 runs from the final over alone, a crucial cameo that single-handedly pushed his team's total to a competitive 146 for 9 and gave his fellow bowlers a fighting chance.
The Inevitable Collapse
The UAE began their chase with confidence, racing to 35 for 1 in the first four overs and looking very much up for the fight. A promising 48-run partnership for the fourth wicket had the game hanging in the balance, with the UAE needing 62 runs from the final six overs with six wickets in hand. However, as the pressure mounted, the gulf in class between the two sides became brutally apparent.
Pakistan's spin duo of Abrar Ahmed and Saim Ayub expertly choked the run rate through the middle overs, before the seamers returned to trigger a spectacular collapse. The UAE's innings capitulated in a heap, as they lost their last seven wickets for just 20 runs in the space of 23 balls. Shaheen Shah Afridi backed up his batting heroics with two key wickets, ensuring that a day that began with a potential crisis ended with Pakistan's safe passage to the next stage of the tournament.
