Australia held their nerve under great pressure and came out on top in the second semi-final of the T20 World Cup 2021 against Pakistan on Thursday. The Aussies chased down a mammoth 177 with an over to spare and five wickets still intact.
In an impressive run-chase, David Warner at the top and the duo of Marcus Stoinis and Matthew Wade came to the party for their side and propelled it past the finish line when the game, for most parts, looked at a knife’s edge.
Wade and Stoinis played the end-overs act to perfection, playing knocks of 41* off 17 and 40* off 31, respectively, to take their side through. Wade had arguably his greatest moment on the field for Australia as he hit Pakistan’s ace speedster Shaheen Afridi for three consecutive sixes to seal the game.
With a further 18 needed off the last 9 balls, it was felt that the two Aussie batters would look to minimise risks and try and give themselves a 14-15 run window to sneak through in the final over against Shaheen’s more expensive pace partner Haris Rauf. But Wade had other ideas.
The left-hander first hit Shaheen for a scoop that sailed over the fine-leg boundary; he then smashed him for a maximum over deep mid-wicket and then nailed another scoop that ended the game. Interestingly, either through the pressure of the situation or his own inexperience, Shaheen only banked on his yorker at the death and paid the prize missing the mark. Wade, it was evident, waited for a full-length ball and smashed them for sixes on each occasion.
It was a great moment for Australia and Wade, whose career has been spent under great scrutiny over his place in the side and here he was winning his country a World Cup semi-final. At the other end, Stoinis also played his part beautifully for Australia, stitching an invaluable partnership of 81 runs with Wade. Stoinis hit two fours and two sixes through his unbeaten knock.
The Wade-Stoinis stand ensured that Australia didn’t lose their way after the cheap wickets of Steve Smith (5) and Glenn Maxwell (7) and Pakistan could never completely gain the ascendancy. Before them, it was David Warner who batted superbly at the top of the order, hitting a 30-ball 49 before being out in controversial fashion.
Warner went for a cut shot against Shadab Khan and ended up missing the ball. The bowler and wicketkeeper went up in appeal and the on-field umpire gave it out. Warner, presumably hearing something himself, went back to the pavilion. However, moments later, replays confirmed that there was daylight between the bat and the ball.
Nevertheless, all the pain and angst of that moment would’ve faded for Warner the second he saw Wade hit the winning six and secure his team’s berth in the final on Sunday against New Zealand.
For Pakistan, an indifferent bowling performance, especially in the end-overs, hurt them. Shadab, the wristspinner, ended with figures of 4/26. But the rest of the attack proved expensive. Hasan Ali (0/44) and Haris (0/32) were major disappointments. Shaheen (1/35) bowled well at the start of the innings but couldn’t finish his spell well. Imad Wasim (0/25), usually so accurate and miserly, was taken down for an expensive over earlier on by Warner.
Earlier in the game, on a batting beauty of a surface, Pakistan made 176/5, thanks to half-centuries from Mohammad Rizwan (67) and Fakhar Zaman (55*). Spinners Glenn Maxwell (0/20), Adam Zampa (1/22) and Pat Cumins (1/30) were the pick of the bowlers for Australia. The rest of the attack, like their Pakistani counterparts, proved expensive. But Warner and then the Stoinis-Wade duo ensured that Australia covered it up for them and pulled off a famous win.
Brief scores
Pakistan 176/5 in 20 overs (Rizwan 67, Zaman 55*; Starc 2/38) lost to Australia 177/5 in 19 overs (Warner 49, Wade 41*; Khan 4/26) by 5 wickets
