ROTTERDAM, NETHERLANDS: Opener Fakhar Zaman hit his seventh one-day global (ODI) century to guide Pakistan to a 16-run triumph in the first of a three-match series Tuesday against the Netherlands in Rotterdam.
Pakistan won the throw and chose for bat in warm and muggy circumstances on a day where huge scores were normal on a slow pitch at the VOC Cricket Club outside the Dutch harbor city.
The sightseers anyway got having a difficult time prior to posting a telling 314-6 after 50 overs.
Notwithstanding a brave run pursue, the Dutch completed on 298-8 against an energetic Pakistani group, upheld by a bunch of vocal allies.
Zaman cut out a run-a-ball 109 while chief Babar Azam hit 74 preceding being gotten in the wake of confounding a conveyance from Dutch paceman Logan van Beek.
The home bowlers at first contained Pakistan’s batting, with the guests losing their most memorable wicket, that of dangerman Imam-ul-Haq, lbw to paceman Vivian Kingma in the 6th over for a careful two off 19 balls.
In any case, Zaman and Azam in the long run set free and put on an organization of 168 off 170 balls before Azam was trapped in a delicate excusal when he confounded a shot into the holding up hands of Tom Cooper at mid-off.
Zaman was excused two overs some other time when he was splendidly expired by Dutch commander and wicketkeeper Scott Edwards off a pin-point precise toss by Bas de Leede at profound mid-wicket.
Pakistan looked set for a bigger all out yet the Dutch bowlers did well to limit them, with the twist bowling of young people Aryan Dutt and Tim Pringle creating some issues.
The Dutch let themselves however down in the field and dropped a few gets, Kingma strikingly bungling a vital high ball to hand Zaman a life saver when he was on 43.
Batting second, the Dutch lost hard-hitting Max O’Dowd in the second over lbw to ODI debutant Naseem Shah (3-51), with a fastball nipping back onto his cushions.
Shah struck once more some other time in the innings, excusing Teja Nidamanuru, who hauled a conveyance onto his stumps and afterward caught Pringle’s leg before for a brilliant duck.
Individual fast Haris Rauf (3-67) asserted the significant scalp of the veteran Cooper, who made 65 off 54 conveyances.
Cooper and 19-year-old Vikramjit Singh (65) set up a 97-run stand to consistent the Dutch innings.
Edwards then, at that point, took the bat to ball and with three overs left, the Dutch required 48 runs off 24 conveyances.
Notwithstanding Edwards’ gallant knock of 71 off 60 balls, the Dutch missed the mark.
The second ODI will be played at the VOC cricket ground on Thursday, with the last match in the series booked for Sunday at a similar setting.
