Pakistan fielders have had a history of pulling off comical moments on the field. Some of them have gone viral on the internet over the years. The latest entrant to the list is the missed run out chance of Afghanistan batter Ikram Alikhil.
The incident took place in the fourth over of Afghanistan’s run chase in the first ODI of the series against the Babar Azam-led side. Alikhil was new to the crease and had hit Naseem Shah for a boundary on the first ball he faced. Next ball, Shah pitched it fuller. Alikhil tapped it towards the covers and tried to scamper for a single. Rahmanullah Gurbaz was uncertain of a single and sent Alikhil back which led to chaos in the middle.
After covering more than half of 22 yards, Alikhil turned back to save his wicket. Fakhar Zaman caught hold of the ball, ran closer to the stumps, and tried an underarm throw. The ball missed the stumps. By then Rizwan had enough time to come to the stumps but he was a little far behind. He gathered the ball but it got out of his gloves. He dived towards the stumps but lost the ball in the process. Rizwan also injured himself and got some medical attention in the middle.
However, Alikhil could not make the most of an early reprieve. Haris Rauf was introduced into the attack in the eighth over and got the wicket of the southpaw. A faint inside edge carried to Rizwan who made up for the faux pas with a good catch. Alikhil could not add a single run to his score after surviving the run out and Afghanistan were reduced to 18/4 in the run chase of 202.
Earlier, Pakistan batters struggled after Azam won the toss and opted to bat first at Mahinda Rajapaksa International Stadium, Hambantota. Zaman got out in the first over whereas Azam got out for a rare duck. Imam-ul-Haq's half-century kept Pakistan afloat. Wickets kept falling but contributions from Iftikhar Ahmed and Shadab Khan helped them post 201 before getting all out in the 48th over.
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