It has been an up and down kind of a year for Pakistan Cricket with some sensational performances in various formats while there were some huge disappointments as well.
While Pakistan cricket team supporters mostly show interest the men’s senior cricket team, but this year, it was the women’s and junior teams which brought joy to the green nation.
Pakistan men’s cricket team was eliminated from the Asia Cup and the Cricket World Cup in the initial stages, so the year for the most senior team wasn’t a decorated one in terms of winning world or regional titles. Meanwhile, the Women in Green and junior teams showcased their class and provided hope to the fans that Pakistan can be competitive across formats, age groups and gender.
Let’s have a look at Pakistan’s best cricket moments from 2023:
Defeating Sri Lanka in Test Series
Pakistan men’s cricket team defeated Sri Lanka, 2-0, in their home at the start of the Test season. The captain of that time, Babar Azam, became the first Pakistani captain to win a Test series against Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka after 8 long years, the last one was Misbah-ul-Haq in 2015.
The rainy country is termed one of the most difficult countries to tour as a foreign country. The spin-friendly conditions are expertly handled by the local spinners as they pose a major issue on the 4th and 5th day of any Test match in the country.
In terms of batting, Saud Shakeel scored a double-century in the First Test match which propelled Pakistan towards the victory. Middle-order batter, Agha Salman, scored a hundred in the Second Test match to cement his place in the Test set-up of the South Asian conditions.
Leg-spinner, Abrar Ahmed, picked wickets consistently which enabled the team to restrict the opponents to meagre totals. In the Second Test match, left-arm spinner Nauman Ali picked 7 wickets which helped Pakistan bundle out Sri Lanka for a low total, thus resulting in an innings defeat for the host nation.
A great way for Pakistan men’s senior team to set themselves up for a blockbuster year ahead, which included the Asia Cup and World Cup. Unfortunately, the Men in Green were unable to continue their fine start as they failed to win both the tournaments.
Pakistan Women’s Success in New Zealand
Pakistan women’s cricket team defeated New Zealand, 2-1, in a WT20I series in the White Ferns backyard. After England, Pakistan became the 2nd country to defeat New Zealand in a WT20I series at their home.
The win came as a surprise as the national cricket supporters were not expecting the women’s team to take down New Zealand women in their own backyard. Some of these fans even criticized that the women have gone on a vacation and will have a good foreign tour before returning home empty-handed.
The women’s team then defeated New Zealand in a WODI match as well. The team lost the series, 2-1, but they gave tough competition to the Ferns. The second WODI ended with NZ winning the match by a solitary wicket, else both of the series could’ve gone in greens favor.
Pakistan Ranked No#1 ODI Team
Pakistan men’s cricket team became the number 1 ranked One-Day International (ODI) team on 26 August 2023, when they defeated Afghanistan in the third ODI of the bilateral series in Sri Lanka. Pakistan overtook Australia, who later on won this year’s Cricket World Cup, and got the crown of the best team according to the rankings table.
The feat was achieved at the R. Premadasa Stadium, Colombo, as it was Afghanistan’s home series so a neutral venue had to be picked.
At the start of the series, Pakistan had to whitewash Afghanistan, 3-0, in order to attain the highest rank. The green team won the three matches and achieved their target.
While there was a lot of debate going on in the cricket fraternity whether these rankings matter in the grander scheme of things, nevertheless, it was as major achievement for Babar Azam as the captain of the side.
Pakistan Women Whitewash South Africa
Pakistan women’s cricket team defeated the touring, South Africa, team in a WT20I series. The green queens whitewashed South Africa, 3-0, although all three matches were close-calls.
The First match ended on the last ball when Pakistan successfully chased the target. The Second match ended on the first ball of the last over, while the Final match was won by defending the target as Pakistan won the match by 6 runs.
Left-hand batter, Bismah Maroof, gave consistent performances throughout the series, while opener Sidra Ameen and all-rounder Aliya Riaz chipped in with important runs.
Winning Emerging Asia CupÂ
Pakistan’s emerging cricket team won the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) organized Asia Cup in Sri Lanka. Pakistan defeated their neighbors, India, by a hefty margin of 128 runs to lift the trophy.
During the group stages, India defeated Pakistan which put down a lot of cricket supporters. Pakistan then gained momentum, defeated Sri Lanka in the Semi-Finals and then beat their arch-rivals in the Final.
Fast bowler, Arshad Iqbal, got a 5-wicket-haul in the Semi-Final, while the hero of the Final was middle-order batter, Tayyab Tahir, who scored a century to help amass a target of over 300 runs.
Did we miss anything else? Write down your suggestions in the comments below!
