Third T20: Pakistani bowlers shine as South Africa restricted to 139

LAHORE: Pakistan’s bowlers continued their impressive run in the final match of the T20 series against South Africa, limiting the Proteas to 139 for nine at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium.

From the very first over of the innings, Pakistani pacers dominated. Shaheen Shah Afridi struck twice in his opening over, dismissing Quinton de Kock and Pretorius without allowing him to score. Early wickets pushed the South African batters into a defensive mode as they struggled to build momentum.

Reeza Hendricks top-scored with 34 runs, Corbin Bosch made 30, and captain Donovan Ferreira added 29, but none could accelerate the innings due to disciplined Pakistani bowling.

For Pakistan, Shaheen Shah Afridi claimed three wickets, while debutant spinner Usman Tariq and Faheem Ashraf took two each. Mohammad Nawaz and Salman Mirza picked up one apiece.

Earlier at the toss, skipper Salman Ali Agha announced two changes to the squad — spinner Abrar Ahmed and fast bowler Naseem Shah were rested, with spinner Usman Tariq making his T20 debut. Shaheen Shah Afridi also returned to the playing XI.

Pakistan playing XI

Salman Ali Agha (captain), Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Babar Azam, Usman Khan (wk), Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Salman Mirza, and Usman Tariq.

In the first T20, South Africa had defeated Pakistan by 55 runs in Rawalpindi, bowling them out for 139 while chasing 195. Pakistan bounced back in the second match at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium, leveling the series 1–1 with a dominant nine-wicket victory. Saim Ayub starred with an unbeaten 71, while Faheem Ashraf took four wickets for 23 runs. Salman Mirza claimed three wickets for 14, and Naseem Shah bagged two.