Pakistan’s ICC U19 Cricket World Cup campaign got off to a disappointing start on Friday as England dismantled the top-place Green Shirts, taking six wickets for 86 runs to seal a 37-run win.
Winning the toss at the Takashinga Sports Club in Harare, Pakistan U19 team captain Farhan Yousuf opted to field first – a decision which proved in favor of the team as they bowled out England for just 210 in a fifty-over match.
England slugger Caleb Falconer scored 66 runs, for which he also got the man of the match award later, helped by Ben Dawkins’ 33 and Ralphie Albert’s 25.
With the help of the dominant spells of Pakistani bowler Ahmed Hussain, who took three wickets, and Ali Raza, Abdul Subhan and Moshin Qamar, who grabbed two wickets each, Pakistan established their position, surging from the first innings.
However, while chasing the target, Pakistan’s top order could not resist the bowling attack of England’s Alex Green and James Minto, as both took a few wickets each.
Six of Pakistan’s batters were sent back to the pavilion for just 86 runs.
Despite the combative and resilient captain Yousaf’s 65 runs, no other Pakistani batter could sustain more on the field to keep the chase alive.
U19 Asia Cup final hero Sameer Minhas could only add 10 runs before being bowled out of the innings.
England bowled out Pakistan for just 173 runs in 46.3 overs.
In the next match, Pakistan U19 cricket team will face Scotland U19 on January 19.
The first match of the tournament turned out to be bleak, but the remaining matches could help the Greenshirts maintain hope for the round of 16.
