Pakistan Beat the South Africans Again in Lahore

6 50s in Succession
By SS
October 6 2003

Pakistan completed an excellent all round performance to outgun the South Africans. The margin of 42 runs probably doesn't show how one sided thsi match became after the collapse of South Africans middle order.

2 wins out of two in Lahore for a Pakistani side that after mediocre and below par performances against Bangladesh, many had feared would not be able to perform well against a talented and star studded South African team.

The nature of the second win in Lahore must have been extremely pleasing to the players themselves, the fans and all those who have shown faith in this group of players. The batting although not perfect at the start, seemed to step through the gears at the right time, with Yousuf Youhana, Younis Khan, Inzamam ul Haq and Shoaib Malik all making important contributions. The score of 267 was once again a challenging one and although the Pakistanis will have been slightly disappointed with the total, it was probably about 20 runs more than had looked likely. Once again the South Africans seemed to lack the right length at the end of the innings, with yorkers a scarce commodity. Instead they either pitched a full length or just in the slot for the Pakistani big hitters.

Yousuf Youhana and Younis Khan injected pace into the innings with quick and thoughtful running between the wickets. This exerted pressure on the South African bowlers and fielders and seemed to rattle Graeme Smith, who showed very little inventiveness. It was nice to see two experienced batsman batting to a gameplan and sticking to that plan. Thoughtful, responsible and risk free cricket from Younis and Yousuf, instead of the occasional panicked and reckless running between the wickets which is evident from these two.

Inzamam ul Haq’s cameo at the end gave Pakistan the boost at the end of the innings which they needed to lift them from an average total to a very competitive one. The last over from Andrew Hall yielded 16 runs, the majority from the bat of a wounded lion, fighting hard for his country.

The Pakistani bowling at the start had the right balance, with the attacking but not wild Sami sharing the new kookaburra with Umer Gul, who displayed a consistent line and length. Too often the first 8 overs of the Pakistani bowling yields too many runs, but this was a noble effort by the two pacemen with a combine age of 40 years.

The South African batsman must take a long hard look at themselves after the first two one dayers, because in both matches they have been in a dominant and match winning position, only to buckle under the pressure exerted by the home team. Kallis and Dippenaar had done the hard work and only needed to keep working the ball around for 4 or 5 runs an over, but instead Kallis played a needless sweep shot and the middle order showed their faces and departed like men in a hurry.

The Pakistani fielding throughout this match was exemplary with 3 brilliant run outs, 2 from Sami and one from Younis Khan contributing to the South African downfall. The bowling in the middle period was disciplined and the line was perfect. Hafeez who picked up 3 wickets and Razzaq kept the South Africans on a tight rein, although the explosive Mohamed Sami was the pick of the bowlers. His two yorkers to Hall and Petersen could be used on any coaching video on how to bowl the perfect yorker.

The final margin of 42 runs probably does not confirm just how one sided this game eventually became and only the Pakistanis taking the foot of the pedal enabled the South Africans to lift their score over 200.

One sad note that this game will be remembered for, was the unsavory incident between Andrew Hall and Yousuf Youhana. Plenty has been written on this messageboard about this incident, but in my opinion it is suffice to say that if I were a South African fan, I would be ashamed with the behaviour of Messrs Hall, Smith and Boucher.

The roadshow moves onto Faisalabad for a day game on Tuesday and it will be interesting to see what the South Africans can come up with as far as tactical changes is concerned.