EAST LONDON (Agencies): Azan Awais’s unbeaten half-century in the run chase powered Pakistan to a hard-fought five-wicket victory over Nepal in the 14th match of the ICC Men’s U19 World Cup on Wednesday.
Opting to bat first, Nepal could only register 197 runs on the board and unfolded on the final delivery of the innings. Nepal had a fairytale start to their innings as they raced to 29/0 in four overs. But Ahmad Hassan castled Arjun Kamal (6) in the next over to provide a much-needed breakthrough to Pakistan.
Bipin Rawal then put together a one-sided partnership with Aakash Tripathi (6) before receiving notable support from skipper Dev Khanal. The pair added 37 runs for the third wicket before Khanal fell victim to Ali Asfand in the 18th over. He scored 23 off 37 deliveries with the help of three boundaries.
Nepal then further slipped to 96/5 in 26.4 overs when their batting mainstay Rawal fell prey to Arafat Minhas.
He remained the top-scorer for the side with a cautious 39. His 68-delivery featured four boundaries and a six.
Following his departure, Deepak Dumre (26) and Subash Bhandari (20) made notable contributions at the backend. Arafat Minhas led the bowling attack for Pakistan in their second U19 World Cup fixture with 3/23 in his 10 overs.
He was supported by Ubaid Shah and Ahmad Hassan, picking up two wickets each. In pursuit of 198, Pakistan accumulated 201 for the loss of five wickets and 14 balls to spare, courtesy of a well-crafted half-century by Awais.
The former champions had a decent start to the run chase as their openers Shamyl Hussain and Shahzaib Khan added 80 runs for the first wicket.
The pair had put Pakistan in command but their back-to-back dismissals in the 22nd over caused a stir in the run chase. Shahzaib and Shamyl both remained notable contributor in the run chase with a 37 each.
The Green Shirts stuttered further when they lost two more wickets in quick succession and had slipped to 104/4 in 28 overs.
However, Azan Awais joined forces with Ahmad Hassan and launched an astounding recovery.
The pair added an important 64 runs for the fifth wicket before Hassan perished after putting Pakistan in touching distance. He scored 29 off 37 deliveries, hitting four boundaries.
Meanwhile, Awais stood his ground firm and carried his bat all the way through to steer Pakistan over the line in the 48th over.
He top-scored for Pakistan with a 82-ball 63 which featured six boundaries. For Nepal, Aakash Chand took three wickets while Dipesh Kandel and Aakash Tripathi made one scalp each. Pakistan next face New Zealand in their last group-stage U19 World Cup fixture on Saturday at the same venue.
