Rizwan praises WI execution
Pakistan's ODI captain Mohammad Rizwan spoke candidly following his team's loss in the third and final ODI of the series against the West Indies at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy on Tuesday.
During the post-match presentation, Rizwan, after losing the three-match ODI series 2-1, acknowledged the challenges his team faced on a tricky pitch.
"We understood this was the third game, given a Test across four innings was played on this deck. The momentum in the last 10 overs took it away as we were on top for the first 40 overs," Rizwan said.
The wicketkeeper-batsman praised the opposition's efforts, reflecting on the target they set after a strong comeback in the final 10 overs that completely turned the game around.
"We thought 220 was chaseable here. The credit goes to them — credit to Hope. The execution was good, but the edges went in their favour. Hope batted well and played some good shots," he added.
The 33-year-old explained that Pakistan's bowlers, including Saim Ayub and Salman Ali Agha, were delivering but faced stiff challenges.
Abrar Ahmed was unable to complete his full spell due to Shai Hope's dominant batting, which disrupted Pakistan's bowling plans.
"We had Ayub and Salman delivering overs, and we expected Abrar Ahmed to come in as well. However, because Hope played so well, Abrar couldn't complete his spell," Rizwan said.
He further praised the consistent performance of West Indies bowler Jayden Seales and emphasised the need for better batting partnerships.
"Jayden Seales bowled brilliantly throughout the series and continuously troubled our batsmen. We needed to build partnerships and spend more time at the crease, but unfortunately, that didn't happen today," he concluded.
The hosts finally broke a 34-year-long jinx by securing a memorable 2-1 victory in the ODI series.
This triumph marked the Caribbean side's first ODI series win over Pakistan after suffering defeat in 10 consecutive series. It is being celebrated as a landmark achievement for West Indies cricket.
The last time West Indies won an ODI series against Pakistan was in November 1991 during their tour of Pakistan.
In the series decider, West Indies posted a commanding total of 294 for 6 in their 50 overs. Captain Shai Hope starred with a brilliant innings of 120 runs off 94 balls, including 10 boundaries and five sixes.
Justin Greaves played a crucial supporting role, scoring 43 runs off 24 deliveries, as the pair put together a 110-run partnership. Contributions from Evin Lewis (37) and Roston Chase (36) further bolstered the total.
In response, Pakistan's batting lineup collapsed, being bowled out for just 92 in 29.2 overs, losing the match by 202 runs.
All-rounder and captain Salman Ali Agha was the top scorer with 30 runs off 49 balls, while Mohammad Nawaz remained not out with 23 runs.
Hasan Nawaz added 13 runs, but the top order struggled badly, with opener Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique, captain Mohammad Rizwan, Hasan Ali, and Abrar Ahmed all dismissed without scoring.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Express Tribune
4 hours ago
- Express Tribune
Sinner swamps Auger-Aliassime in Cincy
Sinner subdues Felix Auger-Aliassime to make his way into the semifnal of Cincinnati Open. Photo AFP Jannik Sinner "felt great on the court" as he annihilated Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-0, 6-2 on Thursday to reach the ATP-WTA Cincinnati Open semi-finals with his 25th straight hardcourt match victory. The world number one powered through a rapid-fire opening set and overcame a wobble as he started the second set by dropping serve. The defending champion prevailed in a brief 71 minutes as he claimed an eighth victory in a row at this event and his 30th this season. "I felt great on the court today, you could see that," said the Italian, who turns 24 on Saturday. "But every day can be different. Let's see what I can do in the semis." Sinner, playing his first tournament since his Wimbledon triumph, will face either French qualifier Terence Atmane or Danish seventh seed Holger Rune for a place in the final. Auger-Aliassime meekly lost the opening set after less than 30 minutes, delivering three double-faults in the final game. After dropping his serve early in the second Sinner broke back to level at 2-all, eventually advancing as Auger-Aliassime coughed up his eighth double fault on match point. "I served well today, that was the key for me," Sinner said. "I had a small drop in the second set and I'm happy that I broke back. He moves and serves well, he's difficult to play." Ben Shelton the fifth seed coming off a title in Toronto, finished up the last of the men's fourth-round matches with a 6-4, 6-4 defeat of Jiri Lehecka, punctuated by back-to-back aces to yield three match points. Shelton came good on his second as Lehecka drilled a return wide. "I'm hungry, I'm in a good rhythm and the body feels good," said Shelton, who will face third-seeded Alexander Zverev for the third time this season when they meet in the quarter-finals. Zverev has won all three of their matches, including a quarter-final here a year ago. In women's action, French Open champion Coco Gauff beat Lucia Bronzetti 6-2, 6-4 to reach the quarter-finals. The second-seeded American's game showed minor rust after a bye in the previous round. "I could have maybe made some more first serves in that second set, but overall, I had a lot of aces and unreturnables," said Gauff, the 2023 Cincinnati champion who went on to win the US Open title that year. "I'm happy considering where (my serve) was last week. I'm always trying to get better, but also just trying to take the little wins along the way." "I'm just trying to be happy with where I'm at now, but still doing the things I need to do to improve." Gauff, who was broken once in each set herself, finally secured a spot in the last eight with a concluding break of the 61st-ranked Italian's serve as Bronzetti hit long after 79 minutes on court. Gauf next takes on seventh seed Jasmine Paolini, who crushed 2024 Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova 6-1, 6-2. Krejcikova had treatment on her left foot in the second set and her movement was clearly hampered. Paolini, the 2024 Roland Garros and Wimbledon finalist, won seven straight games on the way to a 4-0 second-set lead and rallied from 0-30 down in the final game to advance. "She's a great player and can do anything she wants with the ball," Paolini said. "But I don't think she was at 100% today." Gauff will play Paolini - whom she beat here two years ago on the way to the title - in her third 1000-level quarter-final of the season after Madrid and Rome.
Express Tribune
5 hours ago
- Express Tribune
Heavy payments to Pak cricketers questioned
The Pakistan team's dismal performances included a win in only one out of three Tests, and two victories in eleven One Day Internationals. PHOTO: AFP Amid the national team's poor performances, the hefty payments to national cricketers have come under the spotlight. This year will likely be the last time that the central contract includes 3% of the ICC's revenue share. According to details, the recent performance of the Pakistan cricket team has been extremely disappointing. The team won only one out of three Tests, managed victories in just two of eleven One Day Internationals, and in T20s, won seven out of fourteen matches while losing the other seven. Recently, 10th-ranked Bangladesh defeated the Green Shirts 2-1 in a T20I series. The West Indies, starting as the 10th-ranked ODI side, won the series 2-1 to move up to 9th place. Pakistan has now slipped to 8th in T20I rankings, 7th in Tests while fifth in ODIs. The team has started losing frequently even against inexperienced opponents, leaving fans deeply disheartened. The PCB is also extremely dissatisfied with the players' performance. Two years ago, senior cricketers pressured the then-chairman of the management committee to agree, for the first time in history, to give players 3% of the ICC's earnings. Although legal complications have prevented the current administration from ending this arrangement outright, it is likely to be included for the last time in the new contracts. The PCB has increased the budget for retainership expenses by 37% (319 million rupees) compared to last year, taking the total to around 1,173.49 million rupees. While this suggests an increase, the earlier understanding from two years ago means that in the 2025-26 contracts, the match fees and monthly salaries will remain unchanged. The match fees for all four categories are as follows: Test match: 1,257,795 rupees ODI match: 644,620 rupees T20 match: 418,584 rupees In Category A, cricketers receive 4.5 million rupees monthly from the contract, plus 2.07 million rupees from the ICC share, bringing their total to 6.57 million rupees per month. In Category B, players receive 3 million rupees monthly, plus 1.5525 million from the ICC share, totaling 4.5525 million rupees per month. In Category C, players get 1 million rupees monthly, plus 1.035 million from the ICC share, totaling 2.035 million rupees per month. In Category D, players receive 750,000 rupees monthly, plus 517,500 rupees from the ICC share, totaling 1.2675 million rupees per month.
Express Tribune
a day ago
- Express Tribune
World's first humanoid robot games begin in China
The world's first-ever humanoid robot games began Friday in Beijing, with over 500 androids alternating between jerky tumbles and glimpses of real power as they compete in events from the 100-metre hurdles to kung fu. Hundreds of robotics teams from 16 countries are going for gold at the Chinese capital's National Speed Skating Oval, built for the 2022 Winter Olympics. The games include traditional sports like athletics and basketball, as well as practical tasks such as medicine categorisation and cleaning. "I believe in the next 10 years or so, robots will be basically at the same level as humans," enthusiastic 18-year-old spectator Chen Ruiyuan told AFP. Human athletes might not be quaking in their boots just yet. At one of the first events on Friday morning, five-aside football, 10 robots the size of seven-year-olds shuffled around the pitch, often getting stuck in a scrum or falling over en masse. However, in a 1500-metre race, domestic champion Unitree's humanoids stomped along the track at an impressive clip, easily outpacing their rivals. The fastest robot AFP witnessed finished in 6:29:37, a far cry from the human men's world record of 3:26:00. One mechanical racer barrelled straight into a human operator. The robot remained standing, while the human was knocked flat, though did not appear to be injured. Robot competitions have been held for decades, but the 2025 World Humanoid Robot Games is the first to focus specifically on robots that resemble human bodies, organisers said. The Chinese government has poured support into robotics hoping to lead the industry. Beijing has put humanoids in the "centre of their national strategy", the International Federation of Robotics wrote in a paper on Thursday. "The government wants to showcase its competence and global competitiveness in this field of technology," it added. Authorities are working to raise awareness of the sector across society. Cui Han, accompanying her 10-year-old, told AFP that her son's school had organised and paid for the trip to the Games. "I hope it will encourage him to learn more about these new technologies," she said. In March, China announced plans for a one-trillion-yuan fund to support technology startups, including those in robotics and AI. The country is already the world's largest market for industrial robots, official statistics show, and in April, Beijing held what organisers dubbed the world's first humanoid robot half-marathon. Chen, the spectator, told AFP he was about to begin studying automation at university. "Coming here can cultivate my passion for this field," he said. "My favourite is the boxing, because... it requires a lot of agility and I can really see how the robots have improved from before." Meanwhile, at the kung fu competition area, a pint-sized robot resembling one from the popular Transformer series attempted to execute a move, but fell flat on its front. It spun around on the floor as it struggled to get back up, the crowd happily cheering.
