CWC 2023, NED vs PAK: Bowlers lead Pakistan to victory over Netherlands

CWC 2023, Netherlands vs Pakistan: Bas de Leede's 4-62 & 67, Mohammad Rizwan-Saud Shakeel's 120-run stand and Shadab Khan's 32 & 1-45 are top performances. Pakistan beat Netherlands by 81 runs.

Hasan Ali took two wickets against Netherlands (Photo: ©TherealPCB/Twitter)

Brief Scores: Pakistan 286 in 49 overs (Shakeel 68, Rizwan 68, De Leede 4/62) beat Netherlands (De Leede 67, Van Beek 28*, Rauf 3/43)

Player of the Match: Saud Shakeel ( 68 runs off 52 balls)

After the warm-up match against Australia at the same venue, Pakistan faced the Netherlands in the second game of the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup 2023 at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad.

Pakistan have had better off the Dutch in both the times in World Cup 1996 and 2003.

Talking point: Pakistan's top order has to buckle up soon

Pakistani top order has been a sheer disappointment for a long time around for a long time now, and they continue with their poor form in the World Cup as well. They need to pull their socks up if they look forward to performing well in the upcoming games of the tournament.

Pakistan heaves a sigh of relief, defending against Dutch Challenge

Opting to bowl first, the Dutch Bowlers were incredible as they demolished the Pakistani top order for a mere 38 runs in the first ten overs.

Spin duo Colin Ackerman and Aryan Dutt almost choked the Pakistani battles, denying them easy runs. Bas De Leede is shown bright with a 4-fer. Mohammed Rizwan-Saud Shakeel's 120-run partnership was the saving grace for Pakistan.

Shadab Khan-Mohammad Nawaz's partnership also provided a good finish, which was instrumental in posting a respectable total to defend. The Dutch batters started decently, having wickets in hand, but became slow throughout the game. The Vikramjit Singh- Bas De Leede partnership gave the team a little hope, but it wasn’t enough.

The Netherlands' loss completely depicts their lack of experience in this game format. Bas De Leede tried to stand tall, followed by Logan Van Beek, who remained not out at 28. But due to a lack of batters on the other end, they lost the match by 81 runs.

The top three performances from the opening game between Pakistan and Netherlands in CWC 2023:

Rizwan scored half century against Netherlands (Photo: ©TherealPCB/Twitter)

Rizwan- Shakeel forge a 120-run stand

Having an early debacle of 38/3 within the first power-play, Pakistan needed a strong partnership to save their drowning ship. The partnership between Rizwan and Shakeel shone brightly in contrast to the disappointment in the top-order batting. Rizwan took charge of some counterattack by sending an outside-off delivery of Aryan Dutt for a boundary. Dutt bowled another delivery just outside off to Shakeel, obtaining a heavy outside edge. Luckily, Vikramjit Singh reacted late, providing Shakeel with a lifeline.

There was no looking back as they cautiously built their innings without a wicket loss. Saud Shakeel hit Vikramjit Singh for two back-to-back boundaries in the 23rd over. Finishing the over with a single off Singh, Shakeel made it to his half-century.

From 38/3, both the batters escalated the score to 158/4, saving the team in their most vulnerable period. Rizwan made 68 runs off 75 balls at a strike rate of 90.67. Shakeel scored 68 runs off 56 deliveries and a strike rate of 130.77.

Read More: CWC 2023, ENG vs NZ: Ravindra, Conway's blitzkreig ensures a 9-wicket victory for New Zealand

Bas De Leede’s all-around performance threatened Pakistan

Bas de Leede was the star of the bowling department with a four-fer. Bas De Leede removed the dangerous Rizwan shortly before the drinks. He bowled a scrambled seam short of length delivery to him, which Rizwan flicked early on. As a result, the ball could sneak through and hit the bails right away. He uprooted Iftikhar Ahmed off a short delivery. Shadab Khan and Hasan Ali were his two more victims. He scalped four wickets off 62 runs at an economy of 6.89.

In the batting, he also stood for his team like a lone warrior. When wickets continued to fall on the other end, he remained rock solid, making 67 runs off 68 balls at a strike rate of 98.53. His innings included six boundaries and two over-boundaries.

Read More: World Cup 2023: The Dutch squad will aim to make an impact

Shadab Khan's All-Round Brilliance boasts the Pakistan team

After the fall of Rizwan and Shakeel, Pakistan needed a rebuild of innings again. That is when Shadab came into the picture. He formed an impressive 64-run partnership with Nawaz, boosting their team's total to a more respectable 286 runs. He made 32 runs off 34 balls at a strike rate of 94.12 before falling prey to De Leede. His innings comprised two boundaries and one over the boundary.

He was handy with the ball, scalping one wicket for 45 runs. He removed Singh with a half-tracker that Singh misread and hoisted over deep mid-wicket. The ball was caught in the deep by Fakhar Zaman. He bowled at an economy of 5.63 and ensured from one end that the required run rate continued to go out of their reach.

Statistical highlights from Pakistan vs Netherlands, Hyderabad, CWC 2023

• Rizwan-Shakeel 120-run partnership is the 3rd highest 4th wicket partnership for Pakistan in ODI World Cups.

• For the fourth time in 10 ODI innings in 2023, Babar has got out to the right arm off break bowling at an average of 30 and strike-rate of a mere 67.

• Rizwan-Shakeel becomes the 3rd pair to score 50+ runs in the same match for Pakistan on a World Cup debut.

• Bas de Leede becomes the fourth player to make a 50-plus score and scalp four wickets for a non-full-member team in a World Cup match.

• Bas de Leede’s 4/62 becomes the 4th best bowling return for the Netherlands in the World Cup.

• Mohammed Nawaz- Shadab Khan's 64-run partnership is Pakistan's 3rd highest 7th-wicket partnership in the World Cup.

Read More: The Pakistan side looks set to make a mark in World Cup 2023

Points Table

Points Table scenario & what’s come

With the 81-run victory, Pakistan now is in the second position with a net run rate of 1.620.

On October 7, Bangladesh will take on Afghanistan at Dharmshala, followed by South Africa taking on Sri Lanka at Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi.

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