Team India were taken aback by the flawless batting of the Pakistan opening pair of Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam in Dubai on 24 October, Sunday. Rizwan was more aggressive of the duo and scored 79 off just 55 balls at a strike-rate of 144. In a recent video, the International Cricket Council revealed that Rizwan had visualised every bit of it before the big game.
He started off Pakistan’s chase of 152 runs with a crisp shot through mid-on and mid-wicket and followed it up with a half pull off front foot for six. He took 10 runs off Bhuvneshwar Kumar and he had visualised playing all the shots he played in the first over before the game.
Rizwan remained unbeaten on a 55-ball 79 and led an embarrassing defeat for India in the company of Babar Azam, who remained undefeated at a 52-ball 68.
Before their brilliance with the bat, India were handed a harsh reality check by the impressive Pakistan bowling attack led by Shaheen Shah Afridi who uprooted both Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul in his first two overs. It was always an uphill task for the men in blue and only Virat Kohli managed to score a fifty as India could manage only 151 runs on the board.
Rizwan has been a revelation for Pakistan in the format after earning a promotion to bat at the top with the skipper and his numbers with the bat has been staggering.