The ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 at MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai, witnessed a heart-stopping encounter between Pakistan and South Africa on October 27, Friday. South African team edged past Pakistan by one wicket in a thrilling match at the Chepauk stadium in Chennai. But Pakistan's back-to-back defeats in the ongoing ODI World Cup saw saw former India cricketer Gautam Gambhir launching a scathing attack on under-fire captain Babar Azam.
Pakistan, choosing to bat first, managed to score 270 runs in 46.4 overs despite Babar Azam and Saud Shakeel's fifties. South Africa responding with gusto had their fair share of hiccups in the match but at the end managed to reach the target in 47.2 overs. Aiden Markram led South Africa's run chase with a scintillating knock of 91 but it all went down to the wire when Proteas saw themselves reeling at 260/9. But Keshav Maharaj combined with Tabraiz Shamsi to pull off a heist for the high-flying South Africa.
Meanwhile Gambhir pulled no punches in tearing into Babar following Pakistan's nightmarish World Cup campaign. In a total of six matches, Pakistan have lost four games.
Gambhir while questioning Babar's abilities, said, "Babar Azam hasn't played any impactful inning. Records and rankings are overrated. The real No.1 is the one who wins matches.”
Babar Azam's performance in the tournament has been a mixed bag. He notched up 50 runs from 65 balls against South Africa, marking his third fifty in this World Cup. Earlier, he had made 74 runs off 92 balls against Afghanistan and another half-century against India. Cumulatively, Babar has garnered 207 runs from six innings, averaging 34.50 with a strike rate hovering at 79 in the tournament. The debate around Babar's underwhelming show is ride as to whether the 29-year-old, currently the top-ranked ODI batter, has truly lived up to his standard in this World Cup.
Meanwhile during the post match presentation Babar rued Pakistan's loss and said,"We are very close, we did not finish well. Very disappointing for the whole team. We fought back very well. In the batting we were 10-15 short. The fast bowlers and spinners fought well but unfortunately it was not to be. It is part of the game, in DRS it is part of the game. Had he given it out, it would have favored us. We have an opportunity to win this and stay in the race but not to be. We will try our best in the next 3 matches and put our efforts and play for Pakistan. Let's see where we will stand after that."
For the first time even in the World Cup history, Pakistan lost four matches in a row. This win also catapulted South Africa to top of the points table edging Team India. Meanwhile Pakistan tumbled to sixth in the standings with just four points under their belt. Pakistan will now face Bangladesh on October 31 while South Africa will take on New Zealand on November 1.
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