Pakistan outfox Netherlands, win ODI series 3-0: Key stats
Pakistan beat Netherlands by nine runs to wind up the series with a 3-0 scoreline on Sunday. Tom Cooper (62) and Vikramjit Singh (50) almost pulled the 207-run chase in the hosts' favor but fell short (197/10). Naseem Shah's five-wicket haul foiled their chances. Earlier, Babar Azam's 91 rallied Pakistan past 200. Meanwhile, Bas de Leede (3/50) had the best figures for the Dutchmen.
How did the third ODI pan out?
Pakistan were dealt with an early blow with Abdullah Shafique's dismissal. Babar came to the rescue and fetched a 55-run stand alongside Fakhar Zaman. He then added pivotal 46 runs with Salman Agha on the other end. Nevertheless, the Dutchmen succeeded in folding their rivals on 206. Netherlands steadied their ship after early collapses but faltered at the final moments.
Babar falls short of 18th ODI ton
Coming in at 3/1, Babar opted for a cautious approach for the bulk of his stay. It wasn't a fluent knock from Babar's standards, but he looked set for a ton before being caught and bowled by Aryan Dutt in 43rd over. He compiled a 125-ball 91 after having struck seven fours and two sixes. He now has 4,664 ODI runs at 59.79.
Runs galore for Babar
Babar mustered all the experience to clock his 22nd ODI fifty and ninth fifty-plus score in a span of 10 ODI innings. His knocks read 158, 57, 114, 105*, 103, 77, 1, 74, 57, and 91. Against Netherlands, Babar now owns 222 runs at 74.00.
Netherlands post an all-round effort with the ball
Right-arm medium Vivian Kingma bowled a peach of a delivery to bamboozle debutant Shafique (2). He concluded with 2/15 in 5.4 overs. He has steered to 18 scalps at 33.05. De Leede made light work of Pakistan's middle-order (3/50). He now has nine wickets at an economy of 6.18. Meanwhile, Dutt, Logan van Beek, and Shariz Ahmad picked a wicket each.
A win to savor for Pakistan!
Pakistan now boast a perfect 6-0 record over the Dutchmen in the format. Both teams first met in the 1996 World Cup, with Pakistan winning by eight wickets. The Men in Green earned a nine-wicket win in the 2002 Champions Trophy. Prior to this series, both sides met in the 2003 WC, wherein Pakistan trounced their rivals by 97 runs.
Netherlands unlock a laud-worthy feat
As per Kausthub Gudipati, this was only the third instance wherein Netherlands bowled out a full-member team in men's ODI. They folded India (204) in 2003, Ireland (163) in 2021, and now Pakistan (206) in 2022.
Vikramjit rises to the occasion
Vikramjit unfurled one of the most mature knocks of his career. He chipped in with an 85-ball 50 laced with seven fours. It was his third ODI fifty and second against Pakistan, having scored 65 in the first ODI. He was also instrumental in forging a 71-run stand alongside Cooper to cut the chase. The opening batter has raced to 367 runs at 30.58.
Cooper completes a hat-trick of fifties
Cooper, who had clocked 65 and 66 in the first and second outing, scored a 105-ball 62 in the final duel. He struck only four fours during his stay. The middle-order batter ill-timed a length ball around the middle stump to get caught in 46th over. Nonetheless, he has raced to 1,242 ODI runs at 47.76, with 11 half-centuries.
Key numbers for Naseem, Wasim Jr
Pacers Naseem and Mohammed Wasim Jr were the architects of Pakistan's thrilling win over Netherlands in the final one-dayer. The latter claimed three dismissals, including the prized wickets of Vikramjit and Cooper. He now holds 15 wickets in eight matches, averaging 22.86. Meanwhile, Naseem snared his maiden five-wicket haul in ODIs (5/33). He now has 10 scalps at 11.10.
