Pakistan beat Zimbabwe to take 2-0 lead in ODI series

LAHORE: Azhar Ali played a captain’s innings as Pakistan defeated Zimbabwe in the second match of the three-match ODI series here at the Gaddafi Stadium on Friday.
Century-maker Pakistan captain anchored the team green to six wickets triumph to clinch the three-match rubber. Azhar smashed 102, his second century of career to put Pakistan on the track and later Haris Sohail completed his seventh half century (52 off 49 balls) and Shoaib Malik 36, chased the target with their fifth wicket unbeaten 60 runs stand.
In the 15th over, Pakistan were 68 for two but the skipper showed great amount of patience and took the score to 209 for four in reply to the Zimbabwean 268 for eight. With a changed batting order, Azhar and Sarfraz Ahmed (22) took the total to 46, when the Pakistan wicket-keeper while missing a sweep was trapped plumb before wicket by Chamu Chibhabha in his first over. Then at 68 Graeme Cremer made Mohammad Hafeez (15) hit high towards long-off boundary where Charles Coventry did an excellent work.
Azhar along with Asad Shafiq, opted for a fighting 85 runs partnership for the fourth wicket in 17.1 overs. But Cremer brought Zimbabwe back in the game exploiting Asad at 39 and Sikandar Raza did the rest at midwicket. As Azhar reached his fifty in almost as many balls, Pakistan also completed its 100 in 20.4 overs and 150 in the 31st over but there they still required 119 runs in 108 balls.
Cremer took two wickets while T Muparwa and Chibhabha shared one wicket each. The third and final match of the series will be played on Sunday (May 31).Brief scores: Pakistan 269/4 (Azhar 102, Sohail 52*), Zimbabwe 268/7 (Raza 100*, Chibhabha 99, Yasir 2-40).