Spinners secure Pakistan's Super Eights berth after Farhan's hundred

In a must-win game to seal their Super Eights berth, Pakistan did not shy away from making tough decisions. They dropped Shaheen Afridi from the XI while Babar Azam, their designated number 4, did not even bat. Everything they touched turned to gold, however, as they drubbed Namibia by 102 runs in Colombo on Wednesday (February 18) to secure a smooth passage into the next round.

Pakistan rode their luck after opting to bat first, with Saim Ayub away with an array of false shots and leading edges that evaded both backward point as well as wicket-keeper Zane Green. The gloveman saw it fly past him again with Sahibzada Farhan also enduring a rusty start, even as Pakistan scored 40 off the first five overs.

Jack Brassell finally got Ayub to edge one to Green although Pakistan had the platform laid after a steady PowerPlay. After a couple of quiet overs by the spinners, Salman Agha stepped out and tonked Willem Myburgh down the ground before the leggie was carted for consecutive sixes by Farhan. The opener attempted a third but missed out, tumbling over and hurting his right leg in the process as the physio was summoned. He struggled to run between the wickets on either side of reaching his half-century but as things panned out, he didn't have to anyway as he leathered the ball at will.

Salman kept the charge on before storming off absolutely livid with himself as he handed mid-off a sitter. Khawaja Nafay was promoted up the order but his World Cup debut was short-lived as Gerhard Erasmus cleverly deceived him with a tossed-up delivery right after he darted a quick one, inducing a miscued slog-sweep. Shadab Khan then walked in and while he found the going slow, Farhan managed a string of boundaries. He then flat-batted JJ Smit into the sightscreen before smashing one straight back past him as 200 was now within sight.

Things slowed down a touch with Trumpelmann bowling a six-run 19th over as he kept the ball wide of the batters' reach. Right after Farhan got to his hundred in the final over, Shadab slammed Erasmus's low-release deliveries for two sixes as Pakistan eventually ended on 199. Shadab and Farhan's unbeaten partnership was worth 81, even as the innings had an anticlimactic finish with Farhan letting a wide one go, although it was just inside the tramline.

In response, Namibia showed positive signs early on, although Mohammad Nawaz shelled a straightforward chance at deep square leg to give Jan Frylinck a lifeline. Louren Steenkamp showed positive intent, smashing Ayub for a couple of boundaries in the fourth over. Salman Mirza then castled Frylinck as the latter backed away to expose his stumps, before Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton attempted a non-existent run to find himself short at the non-striker's end.

Thereafter, Pakistan's spinners called the shots, generating considerable turn to deceive the batters as the Namibian innings unraveled in spectacular fashion. Mohammad Nawaz induced a mishit from Steenkamp, who perished for 23 before Shadab Khan got into the act, getting the ball to kick up with extra bounce as Gerhard Erasmus nicked behind. The spinners continued to tighten the lid as the asking rate soared, even as Alexander Volschenk scored a boundary and a six to get himself into the innings. He was then stumped by a sharp-turning stock delivery from Shadab as he skipped down the track. Post that, Usman Tariq sent down a double-wicket maiden in the 14th over, first getting JJ Smit to slog one up with a carrom ball before he cleaned up Trumpelmann with a brilliant googly.

The innings went along at snail's pace with Pakistan's spot in the next round all but sealed. Shadab and Tariq completed the clean-up job with the former bagging a third wicket as Ayub took a splendid catch in the deep. Tariq then wrapped things up with two more wickets to finish with four as Namibia folded for 97, bringing their campaign to a sorry end as they finished winless across four games.

@B0$: Pakistan 199/3 in 20 overs (Sahibzada Farhan 100*, Salman Agha 38, Jack Brassell 2-48) beat Namibia 97 in 17.3 overs (Louren Steenkamp 23, Usman Tariq 4-16, Shadab Khan 3-19) by 102 runs