Kohli says the two-month paternity leave allowed him to spend quality time with his family
Ireland made one change from its narrow loss to Sri Lanka at Lord’s on Sunday, with Paul Stirling coming in for Andre Botha.
Kamran Akmal scored 57 to help Pakistan total a moderate 159-5 against Ireland Akmal hit five boundaries and six in 51 balls, while Shahid Afridi was the next highest scorer with 24 from 13 balls.
Kyle McCallan took 2-26 to be the pick of the Irish attack that did well to limit the scoring in the Super 8 match at The Oval. Boyd Rankin took 0-11 off four overs, including 13 deliveries that didn’t concede a single run.
Pakistan captain Younis Khan won the toss and elected to bat, and the contrast between Ireland’s opening bowlers was acute.
Rankin bowled with controlled aggression from the Vauxhall End and was unlucky not to take a wicket. But Trent Johnston struggled, bowling an accidental beamer at Akmal in the fourth over, which went for 20 runs.
He was replaced by Alex Cusack, who had taken four wickets on Sunday against Sri Lanka.
The switch immediately paid off when he had Shahzaib Hasan caught by McCallan at mid off in the sixth over.
Pakistan was 38-1 after the power-play, but Shahid Afridi joined Akmal and scored quickly before he was caught by John Mooney off McCallan in the 10th over.
Three overs later, Regan West bowled Younis’ leg stump as the Pakistan captain tried to sweep.
Johnston returned from the Vauxhall End to bowl Akmal in the 17th over and Misbah-ul-Haq was caught by Niall O’Brien in the 18th, three balls after hitting Kyle McCallan for six over long on.
In the last over, Abdul Razzaq hit a six off Cusack that nearly cleared the Pavilion. But though he added 13 with Shoaib Malik in the final six balls, Ireland will be satisfied with its damage-limitation exercise.
Ireland:
WTS Porterfield, PR Stirling, NJ O’Brien, KJ O’Brien, AR White, JF Mooney, DT Johnston, AR Cusack, WK McCallan, RM West, WB Rankin
Pakistan:
Kamran Akmal, Shahzaib Hasan, Abdul Razzaq, Shoaib Malik, Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq, Shahid Afridi, Fawad Alam, Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal, Mohammad Aamer
Kohli says the two-month paternity leave allowed him to spend quality time with his family
Hardik will be expecting an improved performance from spinners Shams Mulani and Piyush Chawla
The opener completed his 100th T20 fifty-plus score, becoming the first Indian and overall only third player to do so
Kohli, who took a two-month paternity break, scored a match-winning 77 off 49 balls for RCB against Punjab
Kohli smashed 11 fours and two sixes in his 49-ball blitz as hosts Bengaluru chased down their victory target of 177 with four balls to spare
Ahmedabad gets play-offs, while Delhi Capitals home games start from April 20, factoring in the upcoming election dates
The Mumbai Indians player was dropped from BCCI's central contract list after he refused to play domestic matches before the start of IPL 2024
At 24, Gill is the youngest captain in the IPL but he showcased his mettle against MI in the leadership role