Hasan Ali stars as Pakistan sweep Test series against Proteas

Right-arm pacer Hasan Ali's 10-wicket haul helped Pakistan beat South Africa by 95 runs on Monday in the second and final Test here at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. With this, the Babar Azam-led side won the two-Test series 2-0.

On the fifth and final day, Ali followed his first-innings 5/54 with 5/60 to finish the match with figures of 10/114 as Pakistan bundled out the Proteas for 274. Pakistan had set them a target of 370 to win.

Fellow quick Shaheen Shah Afridi picked four for 51 while leg-spinner Yasir Shah got one for 1/56.

For South Africa, Aiden Markram struck a valiant century, his first on foreign soil, but it was not enough as South Africa suffered their first Test series defeat to Pakistan since 2003.

 

 

Markram scored 108 (243 balls, 13 fours, 3 sixes), although he didn't find much support from other Proteas batsman. Only Temba Bavuma (61 off 125 balls, 6 fours) offered any real backing as Mark Boucher's side slipped from their promising position of 127/1 on Day 4 to another defeat. South Africa had lost the first Test by seven wickets in Karachi.

 

Things could have gone much better had they not lost the overnight batsman Rassie van der Dussen so early in the day for 48. The South Africa No. 3 batsman was cleaned up on the third ball of the day by Ali to end a battling 94-run stand.

 

The visitors were dealt another blow when former captain Faf du Plessis lasted only 13 deliveries before he was sent back to the pavilion by the same bowler, trapped leg before wicket for five.

 

The Proteas suddenly found themselves under pressure on 135/3.

 

Markram and Bavuma got together for a 106-run fourth-wicket vigil that took the home side to within 129 runs of victory.

 

Along the way, Markram completed his fifth Test ton and his highest score away from home, beating the 74 he made in the second innings in Karachi.

 

But that was as good as it got as the new ball then proved decisive. Pakistan needed just 11.4 overs to clean up the visitors' line-up from the time they took it after 80 overs.

 

The centurion and Quinton de Kock (0) were dismissed from successive Ali deliveries. Bavuma then fell to Afridi just over five overs later, having completed a 15th career half-century a little earlier.

 

George Linde (4) was next to go when he was caught by Faheem Ashraf off Ali at point, while Afridi took out Keshav Maharaj (0) and Kagiso Rabada (0) within three deliveries.

 

Wiaan Mulder was then the last man out, bowled by Yasir Shah for 20, handing Pakistan the win.

Ali was named the man of the match while Pakistan wicket-keeper Mohammad Rizwan was adjudged the player of the series as he accumulated 166 runs in the three innings he batted.

The two teams will now face each other in a three-match T20I series to be played at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore from Thursday.

Brief scores: Pakistan 272 and 298 beat South Africa 204 and 274 (Aiden Markram 108, Temba Bavuma 61; Hasan Ali 5/60) by 95 runs.

--IANS

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