Pak vs Ban, ODI WC: Shaheen Afridi should have been Player-of-the-Match, feels Irfan Pathan

Fakhar Zaman's aggressive 81 pipped Shaheen Afridi's 3 for 23to win the Player-of-the-Match award as Pakistan returned to winning ways with a convincing seven-wicket win over Bangladesh in match 31 of the ODI World Cup 2023 edition on Tuesday (Oct 31). Asked to bowl firstat the iconic Eden Gardens, Kolkata, Babar Azam-led Men in Green rode on Shaheen's early strikes, three wickets from Mohammad Wasim Jr. and Haris Rauf's 2 for 36 to dismiss Bangladesh for 204 in 45.1 overs. In reply, it was Zaman's 74-ball 81 and Abdullah Shafique's 69-ball 68 that helped their side chase down the score in 32.3 overs.

Zaman, returning to the side after a long time, was at his aggressive best and launched some big hits to end his inning with 81 runs, laced with 3 fours and 7 sixes at a strike rate of 109.46. After the game, former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that Shaheen should have been given the Player-of-the-Match award instead of the left-handed batter as it was his 3 for 23 which set the tone for an easy win for Pakistan.

Irfan wrote. “Playing against Bangladesh who is down and out in their confidence, Pakistan needed to play aggressive. They did that very well. Shaheen should have been awarded Man of the match."

At the post-match presentation, Babar said, "All credit to the boys the way we played in all three departments. We know, if Fakhar bats for 20-30 overs, it's a different ball game, he played his natural game. Good to see him. We are trying to win the next twomatches, we'll see where we stand. We started well, the way Shaheen started. After 15-20 overs, they built a partnership, our main bowlers picked wickets. We picked wickets in the middle overs. Thank you (fans) so much for the support."

With this win, Pakistan have six points from seven encounters and climbed to the fifth spot in the points table. They remain in the race for the semi-finals but need to win both their remaining games.Besides,a lot of other things need to go in their favour as well. They next play New Zealand on Saturday (Nov 4) in Bengaluru.