Maqsood And Muhammed Irfan Star in Pakistan Win

Pakistan 247 for 7 (Maqsood 93*, Sohail 39, Taskin 2-41) beat Bangladesh 246 (Mahmudullah 83, Tamim 81, Irfan 5-52) by three wickets

Scorecard

A five-wicket haul from Mohammad Irfan, followed by an unbeaten 93 from Sohaib Maqsood helped Pakistan edge Bangladesh by three wickets in their warm-up game in Sydney.

Bangladesh, opting to bat, lost two early wickets, but Tamim Iqbal and Mahmudullah counter attacked, adding 168 for the third wicket. Tamim stroked five fours during his 81, as did Mahmudullah during his 83. The pair took Bangladesh close to the 200-run mark, but Mahmudullah was run out in the 40th over, triggering a collapse that led to the team losing its last eight wickets for just 62 runs. Apart from Shakib Al Hasan, who chipped in with 31, none of Bangladesh’s last seven batsmen could make more than 15. Irfan collected 5 for 52, including three scalps in the final over, to wipe out the tail and dismiss Bangladesh for 246.

Pakistan’s openers departed early in the chase, leaving the team precariously placed at 8 for 2, but their middle order led a recovery. Haris Sohail (39) first put up a 51-run partnership with Younis Khan (25), after which Maqsood took charge. With the asking rate rising, Maqsood and Umar Akmal eased the pressure by adding 63 for the fifth wicket. Bangladesh fought back with two quick wickets, but Shahid Afridi muscled three crucial fours to race to 24 off 20 balls, before he was dismissed by Shakib. It meant that Pakistan needed just seven more runs from three overs, and Maqsood, who hit nine fours and two sixes during his 90-ball knock, helped overhaul the target in 48.1 overs.