Fakhar Zaman breaks World Cup record for Pakistan

• Fakhar Zaman’s record-breaking century – 63 balls, 16 boundaries, 9 sixes.
• Rain halts Pakistan’s chase at 160-1, with Fakhar Zaman (106*) and Babar Azam (47*).
• New Zealand scores 401-6, led by Ravindra, Williamson, and Phillips.

In a thrilling encounter at the M.Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, India, on a rainy Saturday, Pakistani left-handed opener Fakhar Zaman set the cricketing world on fire during the 36th match of the ICC World Cup 2023 against New Zealand. The 33-year-old created a record for the Green Shirts, demonstrating his prowess with the bat.

Fakhar Zaman displayed an exceptional performance that left fans in awe, terrorizing the Black Caps’ bowlers and scoring a blistering 63-ball century. His remarkable innings featured 16 boundaries, seven fours, and an impressive nine sixes. Notably, this century stands as the fastest ever scored by a Pakistani player in the history of the World Cup, surpassing Imran Nazir’s 95-ball hundred against Zimbabwe in the 2007 World Cup.

As Pakistan chased a mammoth target of 402 runs, they seemed to be on the right track, with Fakhar Zaman leading the charge. At the time this story was filed, the match had to be halted due to rain, but Pakistan was at a strong position, at 160-1 in 21.3 overs, with Fakhar still at the crease with an unbeaten 106 runs and Babar Azam providing solid support with 47 runs.

What’s even more remarkable is that Pakistan found themselves 10 runs ahead of the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern (DLS) score. If they successfully complete this challenging run chase, it would become the biggest chase in the history of the ICC World Cup.

On the other side, New Zealand had posted a formidable total of 401-6 earlier in the match, making it the second-highest total of the ongoing competition. The Black Caps’ innings were powered by brilliant performances from Rachin Ravindra, who scored 108 runs, Kane Williamson with 95 runs, and Glenn Phillips contributing 41 runs. Additional valuable contributions were made by Mark Chapman (39), Daryl Mitchell (29), and Mitchell Santner (26). Kane Williamson, who had returned to the team after recovering from a thumb injury, fell for 95 after sharing a substantial 180-run second-wicket partnership with Ravindra.

The match’s dynamics were set when Pakistan won the toss and opted to field. Kane Williamson, who had only recently recovered from knee surgery before the tournament, had a rough time as he fractured his thumb during a match against Bangladesh in Chennai on October 13, leading to missed games.

The teams for this high-stakes encounter were as follows:

New Zealand: Devon Conway, Rachin Ravindra, Kane Williamson (capt), Daryl Mitchell, Tom Latham (wkt), Mark Chapman, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Trent Boult.

Pakistan: Abdullah Shafique, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam (capt), Mohammad Rizwan, Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Agha Salman, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Wasim, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf.

Cricket fans around the world are eagerly awaiting the conclusion of this thrilling contest, as Fakhar Zaman’s record-breaking century and Pakistan’s pursuit of an historic chase have added immense excitement to the ICC World Cup 2023.

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