Pakistan Falls to England in T20 Cricket Series

By Parvez Fatteh, Founder of http://sportingummah.com, sports@muslimobserver.com

Pakistan went down in defeat by five runs in the rubber match of their Twenty20 series in Abu Dhabi this week to take the series 2-1.

Roshaan, the five year old son of Pakistan cricketer Mohammad Hafeez waits with the Pakistan team for the presentations after Pakistan won the third cricket test match against England at Dubai International cricket stadium in DubaiFebruary 6, 2012. REUTERS/Philip Brown

Needing 130 runs to win, Pakistan were going along nicely at 107-4 with 23 needed off the last three overs and 17 off the remaining two but Stuart Broad and Jade Dernbach did not lose courage and pulled off the win in the final over. Broad dismissed a well set Umar Akmal (22) off the third ball of the penultimate over and gave away just four runs, leaving Jade Dernbach to defend 13 in the last, which he successfully did, removing Misbah-ul Haq (28) off the final delivery. Dernbach finished with 2-24 and most importantly gave World Twenty20 champions an unexpected win.

Pakistan won the first match by eight runs while England won the second by 38 runs — both played in Dubai. Pakistan had lost opener Mohammad Hafeez for a second nought of the series but Awais Zia (23) and Shafiq added 40 for the second wickets before Zia was trapped leg-before by Graeme Swann and Shafiq was run out.

Captain Misbah and Umar Akmal added 37 for the fourth wickets and when it looked as if that would help Pakistan cross the line England pulled back with remarkable resilience. With 13 needed off the final over Shahid Afridi took a couple before he was run out while taking a second off the next. The next three balls produced singles and a wide and with six needed off the final ball, Misbah was bowled.

Earlier off-spinner Saeed Ajmal finished with 4-23 — his third four wicket haul in the shortest form of the game — to restrict England to a modest 129-6 after they won the toss and batted. Ajmal, who destroyed England in the preceding three-Test series with 24 wickets to help Pakistan to a 3-0 rout, put the brakes on his rival’s progress.

Opener Kevin Pietersen top scored with 62 not out, keeping one end intact during his 52-ball knock for his seventh T20 fifty. He hit six boundaries and a six off the last ball of the innings. Ajmal provided Pakistan with the breakthrough after England raced to 29 by the fifth over, dismissing Craig Kieswetter (17) off a lofted shot at long-on where Shoaib Malik took the catch. Kieswetter had hit a four and six off paceman Umar Gul in the third over.

Pakistan had Ravi Bopara caught behind off paceman Aizaz Cheema for one and Eoin Morgan run out for nine before Ajmal accounted for Jonny Bairstow (three), Jos Butler (seven) and Samit Patel (16). The match ended England’s long tour of the United Arab Emirates where they lost the Tests but won the one-day series 4-0.

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