PAK vs SA | Babar and Afridi shine as Pakistan seal three-match series with comfortable win in final T20I

‌Babar Azam played a statement knock on his comeback as Pakistan beat South Africa by four wickets in the third T20I in Lahore on Saturday. He anchored the chase with a crucial half-century in a low-scoring game after Shaheen Afridi’s impressive spell reduced the visitors to a modest total.

Opting to field first, Pakistan rocked the Proteas' boat with Afridi picking up two wickets in the first over of the game. The double blow ensured that the visitors were put on the back foot very early in the game, ending the powerplay at 22/2. Though Dewald Brevis tried to accelerate the innings with two sixes off Mohammad Nawaz in the seventh over, he became Usman Tariq’s first international wicket in the next. With Matthew Breetzke also deprecating cheaply, the Proteas looked in deep trouble at 42/4. However, cameos from skipper Donovan Ferreira and Corbin Bosch ensured that the Proteas finished their innings at a respectable 139/9. Ferreira smashed three sixes and a boundary during his 14-ball 29, while Bosch remained unbeaten on 30 off 23 balls, with two fours in the knock. Left-arm pacer Afridi was the pick among the home side’s bowlers with a spell of 3/26 in four overs, while Tariq and Faheem Ashraf chipped in with two wickets each.

In reply, opener Sahibzada Farhan and Babar took the side to 36/1 at the end of the six-over mark after Saim Ayub was dismissed for a six-ball duck. But once Farhan left in the next over, Babar and captain Salman Agha stitched a valuable partnership of 76 that took the side past the 100-run mark and closer to the target. But the hosts suffered a slight scare as they stumbled from 120/2 to 134/6, in the gap of three overs, starting with Salman’s (33) dismissal. But it was too late as the home side pocketed the three-match series 2-1 with an over to spare. Babar top-scored for the side with nine fours during his 47-ball 68 as they ended at 140/6, with the pace duo of Corbin Bosch and Lizaad Williams picking up 2/24 and 2/26, respectively.

Babar is back!