Unity Drives Pakistan To Victory
England suffered a stunning upset at the hands of inspired Pakistan in their second World Cup match at Trent Bridge. The hosts and favourites were surprisingly lacklustre in the field as Pakistan, roared on by their noisy and vibrant fans, posted 348-8. Pakistan captain Sarfaraz Ahmed said it was a great team effort.
“The bowlers bowled really well today,” he said.
“We tried a couple of different things - we started with Shadab because we know their openers are not good against spin. Fielding is a very important part. In the last ODI series it was different. Today we fielded better and we bowled better.” Even though England have made a habit of overhauling such targets, they were still faced with having to pull off the most successful chase in World Cup history.
And they were denied by the rejuvenated Pakistanis, who had lost their previous 11 one-day internationals including a 4-0 series defeat by England prior to the tournament and then a humiliation against West Indies on this ground on Friday.
Despite Joe Root’s 107, the first century of the tournament, and a 75-ball ton from Jos Buttler, England were
restricted to 334-9 to lose by 14 runs. England captain Eoin Morgan said it was a very good game of cricket and a great advertisement for the tournament.
“We’re bitterly disappointed to be on the wrong end of the result though. Trent Bridge is a high scoring ground, we felt the wicket was good, the outfield was rapid and we thought if we got partnerships going, 350 was in our grasp.
“Joe and Jos kept us in the game. If we could have got a substantial partnership earlier, we might have got over the line.”
In a tournament where the 10 teams play each other once to determine the semi-finalists, there are plenty of opportunities for England to get their campaign back on track, starting with Bangladesh in Cardiff on Saturday.
Pakistan, renowned for veering from shambolic to sublime in global tournaments, will look to continue their resurgence in Sri Lanka in Bristol on Friday. SCORECARD Pakistan 348-8 (50 overs): Mohammad Hafeez 84, Woakes 3-71; England 334-9 (50 overs): Root 107, Wahab 3-82; Pakistan won by 14 runs - BBC Sport