• Home
  • Match Hub
  • Ire Vs Pak 2024 Balbirnie Scripts Spirited Ireland Win Against Babar Azams Pakistan

IRE vs PAK 2024 | Balbirnie Scripts Spirited Ireland Win Against Babar Azam's Pakistan

Andy Balbirnie and Harry Tector steered Ireland's chase in the middle overs (x.com)Andy Balbirnie and Harry Tector steered Ireland's chase in the middle overs (x.com)

Brief Scores: Pakistan: 182-6 (20 overs) [Babar Azam: 57 (43), Saim Ayub: 45 (29); Craig Young 2/27 (4), Gareth Delany 1/11 (2)] lost to Ireland: 183-5 (19.5 overs) [Andy Balbirnie: 77 (55), Harry Tector: 36 (27); Abbas Afridi 2/36 (3.5), Shaheen Afridi 1/26 (4)] by five wickets.

Ireland stunned Pakistan by five wickets at the Castle Avenue Cricket Ground on May 10 to take a 1-0 lead in their three-match T20I series.

Babar Azam shapes 57 to set up PAK’s 182

After being put into bat first by the hosts, Pakistan lost opening maestro Mohammad Rizwan for just a run in the second over of the innings. Jolted early by a runout at 7-1, young Saim Ayub led Pakistan’s recovery alongside captain and number three batter Babar Azam.

The two cricketers shared 85 runs off the subsequent 57 deliveries to take Pakistan near the 100-run mark. Saim, who belted four boundaries and three sixes, was holed out by Curtis Campher near the ropes off Gareth Delany to miss out on a well-deserved half-century.

Babar Azam, meanwhile, conjured 57 runs from his end to top-score in the innings, before his dismissal at the hands of Craig Young triggered a mini-batting collapse in the Pakistan camp. Shortly after Babar’s exit, Craig trapped Azam Khan for a duck while Shadab Khan lost track of his crease with a runout as Pakistan slipped to 123-5.

Fortunately for the visitors, hard-hitting radical Iftikhar Ahmed bludgeoned a 15-ball 37* at the death and Shaheen Afridi smacked two sixes in his eight-ball 14* to rush the ‘Men in Green’ to a competitive 182-6 from 20 overs.

Balbirnie takes spotlight in spectacular Irish chase

Pakistan fast bowlers Naseem Shah and Abbas Afridi both struck in unison with the new-ball, accounting for the exits of Ireland captain Paul Stirling and number three Lorcan Tucker respectively. Precariously placed at 27-2 in a chase of 183, opening batter Andy Balbirnie and Harry Tector took the attack to the Pakistani bowling arsenal with a sudden upsurge of fluent boundary hitting.

The two batters shared 77 runs together from just 52 balls to take Ireland past the 100-run mark, before Tector (27-ball 36) mistimed one off Imad Wasim at 104-3. Unfazed by the setback, a resolute Balbirnie carried out the Irish rebellion, smacking 10 boundaries and two sixes to produce 77 runs from just 55 balls.

Defying the likes of Shaheen Afridi (1-26), Naseem Shah (1-37), Imad Wasim (1-28) and Abbas Afridi (2-36); Balbirnie’s half-century eased up the equation for Gareth Delany and Curtis Campher in the last few overs as the duo orchestrated a remarkable final-over win for Ireland.

With a 1-0 lead in the bank, Ireland will now face the visiting Pakistan team at the same venue on May 12 with a chance to seal the series.