At Nottingham, June 18 (floodlit). Pakistan won by seven runs. Toss: Pakistan.
Shahid Afridi had been all but written off as a batting power before this match after
some scratchy efforts, but when it counted he came in at No. 3 - surely the ideal place for
him in a 20-over contest, rather than being kept back for the final overs - and bossed the
innings. Not that he exactly played himself in: after watching a high bouncer (called a
wide) from Parnell sail past, he smacked the next ball over mid-on for four. Once he really
got his eye in he pulled Kallis for two fours in an over, then blasted Botha out of the attack
with four successive fours - three lofted inside-out over the covers followed by a delicate
late cut. Afridi, who put on 67 with Shoaib Malik, was suckered by Duminy's first ball
after galloping to 51 from 33 balls, but he had done enough to ensure a par score. Then he
took the ball. Afridi whistled one through Gibbs, and next over repeated the dose to castle
de Villiers, the ball after he was put down by the wicketkeeper. From then on Pakistan
held a firm grip, loosened only slightly when Younis Khan perplexingly gave Fawad Alam
his first bowl of the tournament in the 15th over and his loopy left-armers went for 15. The
slow start by South Africa against pace, including the 17-year-oldMohammad Aamer, had
left them with too much to do against Pakistan's spinners. Again South Africa had found
the penultimate step on the staircase too tricky.
Man of the Match: Shahid Afridi. Attendance: 15,902.