ISLAMABAD: Pakistan cricket team will eye a win against the UAE today, Thursday, and secure a place for itself in the ongoing T20 tri-nation series in Sharjah.
Pakistan will take on the UAE after suffering an 18-run defeat against Afghanistan on Tuesday night. The Green Shirts failed in their bid to reach Afghanistan’s 170-run target, falling short by 18 runs in the end.
“In T20 Tri-series, Pakistan will take on United Arab Emirates in Sharjah on Thursday,” state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported.
Pakistan beat the UAE last week in Sharjah, defeating the home side by 31 runs to clinch their second win in the tournament. Skipper Salman Ali Agha’s side had earlier beaten Afghanistan too, becoming the top-ranked side in the series.
In the Aug. 30 match against the UAE, Pakistan had finished at 207 runs from their 20 overs, led by opening batter Saim Ayub who scored a whirlwind 69 runs from 38 balls.
Middle-order aggressive batter Hassan Nawaz scored 56 runs from 26 balls while Mohammad Nawaz made 25 off 15 balls.
In response, the UAE batted aggressively, led by Asif Khan, who smashed 77 runs off 35 balls. Khan smashed six fours and an equal number of sixes during his innings at a strike rate of 220.
Pakistani pacer Hasan Ali had taken 4/47 from his allotted four overs while all-rounder Mohammad Nawaz returned with figures of 2-21.
The match between the two sides on Thursday is expected to begin at 8:00 p.m. Pakistan Standard Time.
