Shoaib Malik steps-up in Pakistan’s win over UAE in Asia Cup T20 2016 Match 6 at Dhaka
Shoaib Malik steps-up in Pakistan’s win over UAE in Asia Cup T20 2016 Match 6 at Dhaka
To make a statement that Pakistan were scratchy and rusty for most part of the game will not be unfair. The fact remains that they won the game, and quite comfortably in the end. But it was not that comfortable as it seemed. After allowing UAE reach 8 for 129 from being 4 for 40 at the half-way stage and losing three quick wickets, they certainly were in for an upset at the hands of relatively weaker side. From there on, it took a Shoaib Malik and Umar Akmal special to bail them out and gain two valuable points ahead of two testing games against the hosts Bangladesh and defending champs Sri Lanka. Full Cricket Scorecard: Pakistan vs UAE, Asia Cup T20 2016, Match 6 at Dhaka.
After the India match, Shahid Afridi had said that he expected to seniors to step-up. Answering his captain’s SOS call, Malik scored fine unbeaten 63 off just 49 balls to guide his team past the winning line. However, the platform was not the best for an out-of-form Malik to walk out. He was forced to come in early after the Pakistan engine room imploded with just 17 runs on the board. With his back-to-the-wall, Malik produced a gem of an innings and rescued his team. This was just the kind of knock his skipper would have wanted from him and that he brought it in a crunch situation made it all the more better. Full Cricket Blog: Pakistan vs UAE, Asia Cup T20 2016, Match 6 at Dhaka.
Malik started off on a cautious note, as that was the need of the hour. He did look a bit rusty initially, but quite efficiently managed to see through the tough phase. And once the spin was in operation, Malik gradually started finding his rhythm back. In the ninth over, he sent a flat ball bowled outside the off-stump by left-arm spinner Ahmed Raza towards the backward point boundary. That was the first sign of Malik opening up. In the very next over, he hit Mohammad Shahzad for a boundary and from here on, threw off the shackles. READ: Mohammad Aamer, Shoaib Malik shine in Pakistan’s 7-wicket victory over UAE in Asia Cup 2016 Match 6 at Dhaka.
His knock, which was a perfect blend of caution and aggression, can easily be separated into two halves; the first, where he brought all his experience to the table and played sensibly to deal with the initial crisis, and the second where he was simply ruthless and butchered the hapless UAE bowlers towards the end. His knock that consisted of seven boundaries and three hits over the fence turned out to be the crucial one. Malik’s guiding presence in the middle helped Umar Akmal as well, who played a matured innings of unbeaten 46-ball 50.
Malik has been an integral part of Pakistan’s batting line-up, especially in the limited-overs format, for quite some time now. His presence alone in the batting line-up is sufficient to have a calming effect on the team. A big match player, Malik thrives under testing circumstances and it was the tough match situation on Monday that brought the best out of him. A couple of more decent performances in the tournament, and not only he will personally be peaking at the right time with the ICC World T20 just around the corner, but his team will also benefit in the current tournament where they have two tough games to face. At the moment though, his form augurs well for the men in green.
(A self-confessed cricket freak, Chinmay Jawalekar is senior writer with CricLife and CricketCountry. When not writing or following cricket, he loves to read, eat and sleep. He can be followed here @CricfreakTweets)