In a seven-wicket victory against New Zealand on Wednesday that propelled Pakistan into the Twenty20 World Cup final, Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam each hammered half-centuries. With one victory, Pakistan would have won a second championship.
The November 13 decider will take place at the Melbourne Cricket Ground and will feature either England or India, who play on Thursday in Adelaide.
At the Sydney Cricket Ground, Pakistan set the tone with some incisive fielding and methodical bowling that held New Zealand to just 152-4.
Rizwan (57) and Azam (53) destroyed the vaunted Black Caps bowling attack in a 105-run opening stand in front of 36,443 fervently pro-Pakistan supporters.
Mohammad Haris’ 30 off 26 balls contributed to a well-deserved victory with five balls remaining despite a tense finale after both players fell.
Rizwan, who was awarded player of the match, stated, “Obviously, myself and Babar wanted to go for the new ball and the field was challenging.
“After the powerplay was over, one of the men led a lengthy conversation. The lads have put in a lot of effort, and we have always had faith in them.”
It was a rollercoaster trip in Australia to reach another final for Pakistan, who previously won the trophy in 2009 at Lord’s in England when they defeated Sri Lanka by eight wickets.
They recovered from heartbreaking last-ball defeats to India and Zimbabwe in the group stage by defeating the Netherlands and South Africa.
Then, against all chances, they won when Pakistan easily defeated Bangladesh and the Proteas were surprised by the Dutch.
New Zealand, which won Group 1, was hoping to go to the final for the second time in a row, but their quest for a first T20 championship was once more unsuccessful.
When Kane Williamson won the toss, he immediately asked Pakistan to bowl because teams batting first had won five of the six games played in Sydney this tournament. However, the going was difficult.
