Hyderabad: Pakistan pulled off a historic chase on Tuesday here as the duo of Abdullah Shafique and Mohammad Rizwan slammed hundreds in the game against Sri Lanka. Pakistan lost two early wickets during the chase inside eight overs but the duo staged a recovery. Further they played a key role in the historic chase of 345.
Reflecting on the situation they were in, Shafique, who hit his maiden ODI ton, commented that Rizwan's presence at the other end helped him survive in the crunch situation and play a long innings.
"It was a pressure situation but me and Rizi bhai (Mohammad Rizwan) planned to take the game deep and set a platform for the batters who were set to come in next. Thankfully, everything went according to plan," Abdullah Shafique told Muhammad Haris in a video posted by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Both the batters took their time to settle in and focused on taking singles and doubles early in the partnership. However, they switched gears in the later stages and Matheesha Pathirana faced most of the carnage as he conceded 90 runs from his nine overs. After Shafique was dimissed, Iftikhar Ahmed played a unbeaten cameo of 22 from 10 balls to help Pakistan script a historic chase.
Shafique stated that the duo planned to attack certain bowlers and Rizwan's knock from the other end also helped the team achieve the goal. Shafique in his 103 balls knock hammered three sixes. Also, he became the first Pakistan player to score a century on World Cup debut.
"Did a lot of hard work to reach this stage of my career. We pulled off the historic chase. Also, I want to thank the Pakistan captain (Babar Azam) and team management for supporting me. I always look forward to grabbing the opportunity by the scruff of its neck and by the grace of god I pulled off a remarkable performance," he concluded.
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