England vs Pakistan 2019: Hosts defeat Pakistan by 54 runs in 5th ODI
The hosts England produced another dominating performance as they defeated Pakistan by 54 runs in the 5th and final One day international played at Headingly, Leeds on Sunday.
England captain Eoin Morgan won the toss and decided to bat first. Jonny Bairstow and James Vince gave the hosts a flying start, adding 63 runs in 7.3 overs before Shaheen Shah Afridi dismissed Vince for 33 off 32 balls. At the end of 10 overs, England had raced to 95 for 1.
After the power play, Joe Root came to the crease and scored runs with ease. Imad Wasim then struck by dismissing Bairstow for 32, but captain Morgan showed his class with his attacking approach. At the other end, Root played sensibly, taking singles and hitting occasional boundaries.
Root reached his half-century off 37 balls while Morgan too completed his fifty off 43 balls. Afridi got the breakthrough by dismissing Root for 84 off 73 balls. Root and Morgan had added 117 runs for the 3rd wicket.
The Pakistani bowlers made a comeback by dismissing Morgan, Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali and Chris Woakes in quick succession. Ben Stokes could not score at a quick pace either and was dismissed for 21.
Tom Curran came to the crease and scored a quick-fire 29 off 15 to help England post a massive total of 351 for 9 in 50 overs. For Pakistan, Afridi took 4 for 82, and Wasim 3 for 53.
Chasing the target of 352 runs, the visitors got off to a disastrous start as as Chris Woakes dismissed Fakhar Zaman, Abid Ali and Mohammad Hafeez to reduce them to 6 for 3. Babar Azam and Sarfaraz Ahmed then steadied the Pakistani innings, taking them to 55 for 3 after 10 overs.
After the power play, Azam and captain Ahmed played with positive intent and put pressure on the English bowling lineup. It was a good knock by Azam who reached his fifty off 59 balls, while Ahmed played with authority to complete his half-century off 46 deliveries. A brilliant run out by Buttler ended Azam’s innings on 80. He and the skipper had added 146 runs for the 4th wicket.
Adil Rashid then dismissed Shoaib Malik for 4, before another brilliant run out by Buttler ensured that Ahmed departed for 97.
Asif Ali and Imad Wasim scored cameos, and Afridi and Mohammad Hasnain added 47 runs for the last wicket. Eventually, England bowled Pakistan out for 297 in 46.5 overs.
Brief scores: England 351 for 9 in 50 overs (Joe Root 84, Eoin Morgan 76, Tom Curran 29*, Shaheen Shah Afridi 4/82, Imad Wasim 3/53) beat Pakistan 297 in 46.5 overs ( Sarfaraz Ahmed 97, Babar Azam 80, Chris Woakes 5/54, Adil Rashid 2/54) by 54 runs.