Published: Nov 07, 2013, 12:19 AM (IST)
Edited: Nov 07, 2013, 12:19 AM (IST)
Imran Tahir finished with figures of four for 51 © AFP (File Photo)
Nov 7, 2013
Imran Tahir’s four-wicket haul helped South Africa seal the third One-Day International (ODI) against Pakistan by 68 runs at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.
Needing 260 to win, the hosts were bowled out for 191, especially weakened by Tahir’s leg spin which helped him return with figures of four for 72.
South Africa now lead the five-match ODI series 2-1.
For Pakistan, it was Mohammad Irfan (three for 46) who led from the front with Saeed Ajmal (two for 38) and Shahid Afridi (two for 40) chipping in with valuable performances.
Winning the toss and electing to bat, South Africa lost an early wicket in the fifth over when Hashim Amla was cleaned up by Irfan. However, De Kock and Du Plessis added 77-run stand for the second wicket before Shahid Afridi provided a vital breakthrough. De Kock came down the wicket to a delivery from Afridi and missed it completely with Umar Akmal completing the formalities behind the stumps.
Du Plessis followed him just a couple of overs later in a similar fashion when he failed to read a googly from Afridi and was found short of his crease when Umar dislodged the bails. At this stage, South Africa were 112 for three.
De Villiers and Duminy came together for a crucial fourth-wicket stand of 70 runs. A good diving catch from Mohammad Hafeez brought an end to their partnership which was starting to look good enough to take the visitors to a challenging total.
Duminy then found an able ally in Miller as the duo added 61 runs for the fifth wicket. Saeed Ajmal came on and dismissed both in quick successions but they had done enough to take South Africa past th 200-run mark.
In the end, South Africa finished on 259 for eight in 50 overs.
Brief scores:
South Africa 259 for 8 in 50 overs ( Faf du Plessis 55, JP Duminy 64; Mohammad Irfan 3 for 46) beat Pakistan 191 in 44.3 overs (Wahab Riaz 33; Imran Tahir 4 for 51) by 68 runs.
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