A 22-ball cameo of 47 by Abdul Razzaq lifted Pakistan to a remarkable victory in the first ODI against New Zealand
The Wisden Bulletin by Anand Vasu29-Nov-2003
Scorecard
Abdul Razzaq turned the game Pakistan’s way with a blistering innings
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A collective effort from Pakistan’s batsmen lifted them to anexciting win over New Zealand at Lahore. An inspired spell ofbatting, in which Abdul Razzaq clouted 47 from just 22 balls, helpedPakistan chase down a mammoth 292 with two overs to spare. Thisgave Pakistan the surge of confidence they have lacked in recenttimes. The three-wicket win gave Pakistan a 1-0 lead inthe five-match one-day series.When New Zealand won the toss and elected to bat, they needed toput a big total on the board. Having done that, they couldhardly believe their eyes as Pakistan ran away with the game.New Zealand handed debuts to six players: Craig Cumming, RichardJones, Hamish Marshall, Michael Mason, Matthew Walker and KerryWalmsley. With massive inexperience in the ranks, New Zealandneeded one of the seniors to step up and take charge. Cairns,leading the side in the absence of Stephen Fleming, played therole to perfection.After a shaky start, Mathew Sinclair and Marshall batted withcaution, and strung together a 99-run stand that kept thePakistan bowlers at bay. They kept the scoring rate ticking over,making their 99 runs from 21.2 overs.Against the run of play, Sinclair and Marshall were bothdismissed. Each had made 55, and their dismissals, with more thanten overs to go, brought Cairns and Jacob Oram together. Curiouslyenough, the fall of these two wickets close to the 40th overproved to be a blessing in disguise for New Zealand. Cairns andOram boosted the scoring rate with lusty blows and as many as 112runs were scored in the final ten overs, taking New Zealand to amassive 291.Cairns’s intent was obvious, even as he walked out to the middlewith the score on 178 and with more than 10 overs to go. Hecould make the difference between a merely healthy total and animposing one – and he did so in emphatic fashion. Cairns cut and drovethe medium-pacers with power, but reserved his most brutal effortfor the hapless Danish Kaneria.Kaneria’s last over, the 48th of the innings, went for 22 runs.The second, third and fourth balls of the over were alldespatched into the stands in style. After pulling the ball overmidwicket, Cairns showed he was no one-trick pony. He came downthe track and dumped one ball into the stands over long off, andfinished with a big heave over midwicket.Jacob Oram (35) provided Cairns with good support, and was onlydismissed off the first ball of the final over. By then, though,it hardly made a difference. Cairns’s 51-ball 84, inlcuding five fours and sixsixes took New Zealand to a strong position.Pakistan have chased down big totals in the past, and stillremain a dangerous, if incosistent, force in internationalcricket. They got off to the worst possible start, when they lostImran Farhat off only the third ball of the innings. Then, YousufYouhana (42) and Yasir Hameed (52) laid the foundation blocks toa famous win, adding 90 runs for the second wicket in 17 overs.
Chris Cairns smashed 84 in 51 balls, but it wasn’t enough
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The fact that Pakistan scored 292 in 40 overs with no-one makingmore than 52 is testimony to the manner in which they builtpartnerships and always remained within striking distance of theasking rate. Inzamam-ul-Haq (49) played with characteristicfluency, mixing big hitting with careful defence. When he wastrapped lbw by Cairns in the 37th over (194 for 4), Pakistan werein deep trouble.Moin Khan (43), promoted to No. 5, used his experience togood effect, stealing runs from under the noses of the NewZealanders. He set himself up for a final charge, but could notresist cutting at a wide one from Daniel Vettori, and edged acatch to Brendon McCullum behind the stumps (196 for 5).Misbah-ul-Haq and Shoaib Malik fell without causing a flutter andPakistan looked dead and buried at 227 for 7 in 43.2 overs. Theystill needed 65 runs from 40 balls with only Razzaq and the tailto follow. In an innings that will long be remembered by thosefortunate enough to witness it, Razzaq hit the cover off the ballin a 22-ball display of power hitting. At 47 not out (three fours, twosixes), he found himself an unlikely hero. Pakistan were over theline, and New Zealand could scarcely believe it. The last 65 runshad come off only 28 balls. Things happened so fast, that NewZealand will need a day or two to recover.
