Fakhar Zaman dazzled with a phenomenal century to lead Pakistan to an emphatic 21-run victory over New Zealand in their World Cup clash at the M Chinnaswamy stadium in Bengaluru on November 4. With this win Pakistan have jumped to fifth place in the World Cup 2023's points table with four wins and as many defeats.
Men in Green had a herculean task to chase down the mammoth total of 401/6. But Fakhar made his intentions clear from the word go and went on to hammer a robust 126 off 81 riding on 11 sixes and eight fours to ensure Pakistan stay ahead of New Zealand when rain god brought DLS into the picture. After multiple pause in the game, Pakistan were handed a revised target of 342 runs in 41 overs. Rain returned to halt the game again when Pakistan's scoreboard read 200/1 after 25.3 overs. Since rain didn't stop, Pakistan were declared the winners of the match as they were 21 runs ahead of the Kiwis as per DLS method.
Fakhar was adjudged the Player of the Match for his blistering knock. In the post-match presentation the star southpaw said that it was one of his best centuries. "This is one of my best (centuries), I will always remember my 193 against South Africa but this is one of my best," he said during the post-match presentation.
Meanwhile, Pakistan still have a task cut out in terms of making it to the semifinals. The Babar army not only need to win their last league match England but also rely on favourable outcomes from other teams. But the centurion Fakhar still believes Pakistan can make their way to the semifinals and then final.
"We still believe that we can play the semifinals and also the finals But let's see because we are also looking to the Sri Lanka and New Zealand game. We are hopeful that it will go our way,” he added.
Fakhar also revealed about Pakistan's plans to approach the crunch game against New Zealand. Since there were many interruptions in the match due to persistent rain, it was imperative for Pakistan to stay ahead of New Zealand at every juncture while chasing a big total and Fakhar did exactly the same.
"We had thought that it will rain and planned accordingly. We sent a message to the management after 15 overs, that it is drizzling, so tell us how many overs -– because we knew that before 20 overs the DLS Method is not applicable. So, we asked them about the target we need to achieve in 20 overs," Zaman added.
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