KINGSTON, Jamaica, 18 March 2007 — Ireland’s part-time cricketers bowled out Pakistan for 132 in a World Cup Group D match to leave the 1992 champions facing early elimination yesterday.
This was a game that Pakistan could not afford to lose having lost their opener against hosts West Indies on Tuesday, also at Sabina Park. With Ireland having already secured a point from their tied match against Zimbabwe earlier in the week, Pakistan face almost certain elimination if they are beaten on Saturday.
Pakistan began losing wickets from the first over when Mohammad Hafeez (4) was caught behind from seamer David Langford-Smith to the sixth ball of the match.
The usually-reliable Younis Khan then followed with a third-ball nought, caught at slip off seamer Boyd Rankin, to make the score 15-2.
Mohammad Yousuf, another batsman that Pakistan look to when they need to steady the innings, lasted just 31 balls before he drove to point and was caught for 15 off Irish skipper Trent Johnston. That was 56-3.
The loss of skipper Inzamam ul-Haq in the next over was the moment when the Irish party on St. Patrick’s Day really began. He edged the South African-born medium-pacer Andre Botha to Eoin Morgan at slip for one and it was 58-4.
Opener Imran Nazir, renowned for his attacking strokeplay, was probably not the batsman Pakistan wanted in their crisis and his regular playing and missing was soon followed by an edge to slip Morgan off Botha.
Shoaib Malik, Pakistan’s top scorer with 62 in the West Indies match, looked at ease for the 25 balls he lasted, including a firmly hit straight drive off Johnston.
But he became the sixth victim when the score was 72 as he edged seamer Kevin O’Brien to his wicketkeeper brother Niall O’Brien, who was standing up.
There was still hope while all-rounder Azhar Mahmood and wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal were at the crease. But they both fell within four balls to Rankin in the 31st over. First Mahmood played an irresponsible pull shot to a ball that was not all that short and was caught by skipper Johnston at mid-on.
The score of 103-7 then became 105-8 when the same combination accounted for Akmal, who also mistimed an attacking shot and was brilliantly caught by a diving Johnston.
The recalled Mohammad Sami and Rao Iftikhar Anjum added 25 valuable runs together but it was not enough as all 10 batsmen were out caught.
Bangladesh Skittle Out India for 191 in Cup Clash
In Port of Spain, Trinidad, Bangladesh bowlers jolted India’s World Cup hopes after bowling them out for 191 in their opening Group B clash yesterday.
Paceman Mashrafe Mortaza scalped four and left-arm spinners Mohammad Rafique and Abdur Razzak took three wickets apiece to strangle India on a good batting pitch after skipper Rahul Dravid elected to bat.
It was India’s lowest one-day total against Bangladesh.
Opener Saurav Ganguly struck 66 and stayed on till the 44th over to prop up his team, adding 85 for the fifth wicket with Yuvraj Singh (47).
Bangladesh bowlers then snapped up five wickets for two runs to reduce the innings to 159 for nine before the last wicket pair of Zaheer Khan and Munaf Patel put on 32 runs.
Bangladesh, with just four victories over the top eight ranked teams, appeared set for a famous fifth after leaving India reeling in the morning.
Mortaza grabbed two wickets bowling in tandem with left-arm paceman Syed Rasel, who gave away just 31 runs in a single 10-over spell.
Mortaza, 23, forced struggling opener Virender Sehwag to chop an in-coming ball on to the stumps for two runs before Robin Uthappa (9) edged a loose drive to point to make it 21 for two in the seventh over.
Sehwag, whose horrible form continued, was almost run out in the first over and now has scored just one fifty in his last 14 innings going back to October.
Spinner Razzak replaced Mortaza and claimed the prized scalp of Sachin Tendulkar (7) off the last ball of his first over, making it 40-3 after 15 overs.
The premier batsman, playing in his fifth World Cup, edged a drive onto his pads to be caught by teenaged stumper Mushfiqur Rahim on second attempt.
Skipper Rahul Dravid (14) was trapped leg before by 36-year-old Rafique, the third spinner brought into the attack.
Bangladesh kept things tight with their superb fielding.
