Asia Cup 2023: Saqlain Mushtaq lauds Haris Rauf for breaking record

• Haris Rauf breaks Saqlain Mushtaq’s record, becomes joint-third fastest Pakistani to reach 50 ODI wickets.
• Naseem Shah makes history, takes a wicket in each of his first 13 ODIs.
• Pakistan bowl out Bangladesh for 194, win Super Four match by 7 wickets.

Former Pakistani spinner and head coach Saqlain Mushtaq shared his reaction to Haris Rauf breaking his record during the first Super Four match of the ongoing Asia Cup 2023 at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium.

Haris Rauf delivered an outstanding performance, bewildering Bangladesh’s batting lineup with a remarkable spell of 4 wickets for 19 runs in six overs.

In the process, Haris Rauf achieved a significant milestone by becoming the joint third-fastest Pakistani bowler, alongside the legendary Waqar Younis, to reach 50 ODI wickets in just 27 matches. He stands behind Shaheen Shah Afridi and Hasan Ali, who achieved this feat in 25 and 24 matches, respectively.

Saqlain Mushtaq took to his social media account, X (formerly known as Twitter), to react to Rauf’s achievement, acknowledging that records are meant to be surpassed. He expressed his satisfaction in seeing a fellow countryman excel and top the charts for Pakistan, highlighting the tremendous effort, hard work, focus, and dedication required to achieve such milestones. Saqlain praised the Pakistani bowlers by saying, “Well done, boys.”

The Wednesday match showcased the dominance of Pakistani pacers, who not only restricted Bangladesh to a total of 194 runs but also set new records. Naseem Shah, a 20-year-old Pakistani pace sensation, made history by taking a wicket in each of his first 13 ODIs, becoming the first Pakistani bowler to do so. He also holds the record for the most wickets (32) in his first 13 ODIs for Pakistan, surpassing Abdul Qadir’s record of 27 wickets.

Earlier in the day, Bangladesh won the toss and chose to bat. Both teams made one change in their lineups for this crucial match. Pakistan replaced Mohammad Nawaz with Faheem Ashraf, while Litton Das replaced the injured Najmul Hossain Shanto for Bangladesh.

Pakistan and India advanced from Group A, while Bangladesh and Sri Lanka secured their spots in the Asia Cup Super 4 from Group B.

Lineups:

Pakistan: Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Agha Salman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf

Bangladesh: Mohammad Naim, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Litton Das, Towhid Hridoy, Shakib Al Hasan (c), Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Shamim Hossain, Afif Hossain, Taskin Ahmed, Shoriful Islam, Hasan Mahmud

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