On Friday, October 6, Pakistan easily defeated Netherlands by 81 runs, despite Bas de Leede outstanding all-around performance (4-62 and 67). De Leede and Vikramjit Singh both scored fifty runs while chasing a challenging 287-run total, but no other batsmen persisted long enough to pose a bowling danger to Pakistan.
Vikramjit’s successful fence hits in the first Power Play gave the chase a strong start, but Hasan Ali made the first move by embarrassing Max O’Dowd. The veteran Colin Ackermann’s brief appearance was cut short by a courageous hit made by the Dutch No. 3 battery against the part-time spinner Iftikhar Ahmed. De Leede immediately got to work after winning the bowling match, and his alliance with Vikramjit seemed to be a good sign for Netherlands. The practice of pursuing teams monopolising the exhibition games in Hyderabad put pressure on Pakistan.
Shadab Khan then ended the partnership by convincing Vikramjit to hole out to deep mid-wicket. The game was then decisively begun by Haris Rauf’s superb second spell. In the course of one over, he dealt Teja Nidamanuru and Scott Edwards two devastating blows that allowed them to rejoin the game. Rauf’s swift bowling was effective and aggressive, as he outplayed both batsmen. Nidamanuru was defeated thanks to the short ball strategy, as Edwards was outrun and LBW’d. De Leede persevered despite losing wickets till getting bowled over by Mohammad Nawaz’s superb delivery.
Logan van Beek contributed a few hits that helped to narrow the gap between victory and defeat, but Rauf and Ali quickly neutralised the danger. Despite having their own early batting troubles, Pakistan prevailed by a wide margin. They lost their renowned top-three in the first 10 overs, but Saud Shakeel and Mohammad Rizwan formed a strong connection that kept them in the game. The fact that both of Pakistan’s batsmen accumulated over fifty runs each and a combined century lightened the pressure on the Dutch spinners. Netherlands kept taking wickets after the wickets were lost, assisting Pakistan in keeping control.
Mohammad Nawaz and Shadab Khan provided another strong stand down order that enabled Pakistan to exceed the 285-run mark. Rauf and Shaheen Afridi also made a couple significant runs. With a score of 188, they lost their sixth wicket, and it looked difficult for them to reach their target. With the benefit of hindsight, it is obvious how important the runs scored by the lower order were in determining the outcome of the game. The Dutch bowlers may have missed their target a little bit in the final overs, despite the fact that Pakistan was mostly contained by Netherlands, who also succeeded in bowling Pakistan out.
It was still a chaseable score even though the pitch didn’t ease out as much as it had in Hyderabad during the warm-up games. With a superb field performance, De Leede proved that there were still runs to be made on the track. Sadly, he was not successful in getting the support he needed to revise the aim. Rauf’s shooting decisions were questioned by the Dutch, but his second quarter in particular was scorching.
Brief scores:
Pakistan 286 in 49 overs (Saud Shakeel 68, Mohammad Rizwan 68; Bas de Leede 4-62) vs Netherlands 205 in 41 overs (Bas de Leede 67, Vikramjit Singh 52; Haris Rauf 3-43, Hasan Ali 2-33) by 81 runs
