Arafat Minhas vs England: In the second match of the ODI tri-series, young Pakistani all-rounder Arafat Minhas delivered a historic performance with both bat and ball—a feat rarely seen in the history of ODI cricket.
Minhas scored a half-century and claimed 6 wickets in the match, propelling Pakistan to a commanding 87-run victory over England. With this achievement, Arafat Minhas became only the 7th player in the 55-year history of ODI cricket to score 50+ runs and take 6 wickets in the same match.
Match-Winning Comeback by Nawaz and Minhas
Sent in to bat first after losing the toss, the Pakistani team got off to a disastrous start. Gus Atkinson dealt a major blow on the very first ball, having Fakhar Zaman caught by Joe Root.
Following the dismissal of Saim Ayub, Babar Azam and Saad Baig steadied the innings, but by the time the score reached 133, half the Pakistani side was already back in the pavilion. It was then that Hasan Nawaz and Arafat Minhas took charge, forging a brisk 78-run partnership for the sixth wicket.
During this period, Hasan Nawaz scored 79 runs off 74 balls. Following Nawaz's dismissal, Minhas partnered with Faheem Ashraf to add 72 runs for the seventh wicket. Pakistan amassed 91 runs in the final 10 overs, posting a strong total of 302 for 9 in their 50 overs—an effort that included 59 runs from the bat of Arafat Minhas.
English side ensnared in Minhas’s spin web
Chasing a target of 303 runs, England got off to a strong start. Tom Banton and Ben Duckett scored runs briskly for the first wicket, and at one stage, England found themselves in a commanding position at 120/1. However, Arafat Minhas’s magical left-arm spin turned the tide of the match.
Minhas first had the dangerous-looking Banton caught, then clean-bowled Harry Brook with a delivery that turned sharply. He went on to claim the wickets of Jordan Cox, Will Jacks, and Jamie Overton, completing a five-wicket haul. England lost their final 9 wickets for just 95 runs, and the entire team was bundled out for 215 in 38.4 overs.
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