Pakistan thrash Afghanistan 3-0 in ODI series: Key takeaways
Pakistan mauled Afghanistan 3-0 in the recently-concluded ODI series in Sri Lanka. Though the Afghan side walked away with some positives, they failed to cross the line even once. Meanwhile, Pakistan have now become the top-ranked team in ODI rankings. Hence, the Men in Green would be mighty confident ahead of the upcoming Asia Cup. Here are the key takeaways from the series.
Imam, Babar awarded for showcasing resilience
The slow tracks of Hambantota and Colombo demanded resilience from the batters. Pakistan's Imam-ul-Haq and Babar Azam showcased the required application and finished the series with 165 and 113 runs, respectively. Both batters scored two fifties. Notably, both batters had series strike rates of just over 72. Though it seems way too low as per modern standards, their contributions proved to be effective.
Contributions from Pakistan's lower-order
Team Pakistan received significant contribution from their lower-order batters in all games. Shadab Khan scored 39 and 48 in the first two games, playing an instrumental role in his side's triumphs. Naseem Shah, who smashed two boundaries in the last over to win the second ODI, scored 18* in the opener. Mohammad Nawaz slammed a fiery 25-ball 30 in the final match.
Struggles of Afghanistan bowlers
Afghanistan could not make most of the bowling-friendly conditions as they failed to take wickets in the middle overs and leaked runs at the death as well. The Men in Green collected 82 and 80 runs off the last 10 overs in the second and third ODI, respectively. Fazalhaq Farooqi particularly struggled in end overs. Rashid Khan could only manage three wickets.
Poor show from Afghanistan batters
Only three individual fifty-plus scores came from the Afghanistan camp in this series, by Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, and Mujeeb Ur Rahman. Gurbaz and Ibrahim starred in the second ODI, scoring 151 and 80, respectively. However, they failed in the other two games. Mujeeb's fiery 64 came in the final match. No other Afghanistan batter could even manage a series aggregate of 50 runs.
A comprehensive show from Pakistan pacers
Pakistan's pace attack looks threatening ahead of the upcoming Asia Cup. Haris Rauf's five-fer in the series opener meant the Afghan side was bundled out for 59. Meanwhile, Shaheen Afridi returned with six wickets in three games at 16.33. Naseem Shah bowled 14 overs and claimed two wickets in the series. Fast-bowling Faheem Ashraf took two wickets in the final match.
