Published: Sep 02, 2016, 02:31 AM (IST)
Edited: Sep 02, 2016, 10:45 AM (IST)
England have beaten Pakistan by four wickets in the fourth ODI and inch closer to a whitewash as they now lead the five-match series 4-0. Ben Stokes and Jonny Bairstow made crucial fifties and their 103-run stand for the fifth wicket turned out to be the match-winning one. England got off to a shaky start losing the early wicket of Jason Roy after he edged one to Mohammad Irfan at second slip. Irfan had at this stage already received a warning regarding running on the pitch, but that did not discourage Azhar Ali from taking him off the attack. He was rewarded after Irfan removed Alex Hales too for 8, edging one to the wicketkeeper. Joe Root was batting beautifully. Full Cricket Scorecard: Pakistan vs England, 4th ODI at Headingley
It seemed like he was batting on a different track altogether. But his skipper Eoin Morgan at the other end was finding it hard to face Irfan. Despite batting beautifully, Root top-edged one off Hasan Ali straight into the hands of Irfan at fine leg. England were 59 for 3 after 11.2 overs at this stage. Things got worse for them as Morgan edged on to first slip of Umar Gul, reducing his side to 72 for 4 in 14.3 overs. Pakistan for the first time in this series looked in a position from where they can win the match. Full Cricket Updates, Pakistan Vs England, 4th ODI 2016
Jonny Bairstow then joined Stokes at the crease and the duo played exceptionally well, not letting the required run-rate to climb during their 103-run partnership.
Stokes got to his fifty of run-a-ball and Bairstow, playing his first match of the series too brought up his half-century at a quick pace. Pakistan had a chance to get rid of Stokes, but he was dropped after smashing the ball to deep backward square leg. The fielder dove, made a good effort, but could not hang on to the ball. Pakistan were excellent in the field throughout and had that catch been taken, it would have been an icing on the cake.
The partnership was eventually brought to an end by Imad Wasim. Stokes swept the ball straight to Babar Azam at deep mid-wicket, much to the relief of Pakistan. But given England’s deep batting line-up Pakistan would have known that that had to bowl England out to win this match. Moeen Ali had joined Bairstow after Stokes’ wicket. After a good show with the bat, Moeen would surely want to do his job well with the bat too.
Irfan then finally came on to bow in the 42nd over, after spending a lot of time out of the field and the skipper would have ordered him to get a few wickets immediately. He started off his second spell with a big wide. The ball barely bounced on the pitch before it went into the wicketkeeper’s gloves. Irfan could not bowl after that due to injury and walked off, much to the disappointment of their coach and the players.. Pakistan’s over-rate too was not particularly good and needed to get a move on, if they did not want to be fined.
Pakistan suffered a big blow when their premier fast bowler Irfan had to walk off the field injured. Azhar Ali had to bring himself on at one point. But then Azhar’s direct throw sent Bairstow packing for a well made 61. Bairstow stretched full length, but fell narrowly short of his crease. David Willey walked in at No. 8 for England with 23 needed of 34 deliveries. Pakistan on the other hand needed four wickets to win at this stage.
Azhar continued to bowl and Hasan Ali was the only recognized bowler with an over to spare at the end of the 46th over and he was called upon to bowl the 47th . He bowled well in the previous match, but this was a different challenge for the youngster altogether. He too bowled out, finishing with 1 for 53 in his 10 overs. Umar Gul, who is considered to be a death over specialist too had bowled out, finishing with 1 for 39 from his quota of 10 overs. Moeen took full toll of Azhar in the 48th over, smashing him for a six over his head, with England needing just four to win from there. It was a cakewalk for England at this stage and they eased home to yet another win, which means that their unbeaten run this summer continues. Moeen finished the match with another huge hit of Azhar to hand England the win by four wickets with 12 balls to spare.
Pakistan played well in this match after conceding 444 runs in the precious match. They can be happy with the fact that they fielded and bowled much better in this match. Pakistan will now look to win the fifth and final ODI and register a consolatory win at Cardiff in a few day’s time.
Pakistan put on a decent total of 247 for 8 on the board. Azhar scored 80, while Imad struck an unbeaten 57 coming low down the order. Imad put on over 50 runs for the eighth wicket with Hasan Ali, which took Pakistan to a competitive total. England bowled wel too. Adil Rashid and Moeen shared five wickets between them, giving away just 86 runs. Chris Jordan and Liam Plunkett were the other wicket-takers for England.
Pakistan had won the toss and elected to bat first. Both England and Pakistan made a few changes to their playing XI. Willey, Jordan and Jonny Bairstow came into the side for Mark Wood, Chros Woakes and Jos Buttler. Pakistan handed an ODI debut to Mohammad Rizwan. They also got it Mohammad Irfan and Umar Gul in place of Mohammad Aamer and Yasir Shah. The experienced Shoaib Malik and Wahab Riaz too do not find a place in the side.
Brief Scores:
Pakistan 223 for 8 in 50 overs (Azhar Ali 80, Imad Wasim 30*; Adil Rashid 3 for 47, Moeen Ali 2 for 39) lost to England 252 for 6 in 48 overs (Ben Stokes 69, Jonny Bairstow 61; Mohammad Irfan 2 for 26, Umar Gul 1 for 39) by 4 wickets.
Man of the match: Jonny Bairstow
