#report

Misbah, captain of the Titanic

Tweet report for the Champions Trophy game between Pakistan and South Africa at Edgbaston

Nitin Sundar
Nitin Sundar
10-Jun-2013
South Africa. Edgbaston. Must-win game. Rings a bell?
Pakistan once again had a huge army of supporters in the stands. Presenting - the Stani Army.
Confusion reigned supreme at the toss. First, Sanjay Manjrekar, hosting the toss, was clueless about which way the coin had landed.
Next, conflicting reports about Dale Steyn's availability began to do the rounds. He wasn't playing, though. At least one player must have been pleased with that news.
The high-quality Pakistan seam attack got first use of the pitch.
Hashim Amla and Colin Ingram began slowly in tricky conditions, but denied Pakistan an early break. Pakistan didn't help their cause by grassing Amla early.
Amla and Ingram looked comfortable in the early overs, but you couldn't have said the same of Wasim Akram in the commentary box.
Ingram poked and prodded listlessly for a while.
Mohammad Hafeez got him to play a mindless sweep to trap him in front.
Nothing gets twitter restless like slow, torpid batting. Especially if you are the opposite of a slow, torpid batsman.
We'll never know what subliminal message David Warner was trying to convey with that one. The game finally heated up when Saeed Ajmal came on, setting up a delicious battle with Amla.
Amla dictated terms with some forthright footwork, and Pakistan moved into a position of strength despite Faf du Plessis' wicket. However, Ajmal had his man on the reverse sweep after he'd reached 81.
South Africa lost their way spectacularly after Amla's exit, with AB de Villiers and JP Duminy slipping mid-pitch to be run out by Misbah-ul-Haq.
Suddenly Misbah was everywhere. He took a diving catch in the 49th over as South Africa subsided to 234.
Pakistan needed 235 to win. Straightforward? Not quite.
Chris Morris got his ODI career off to a bright start, with a wicket in his first over. Imran Farhat took his tournament tally to 4 runs from two outings. His ODI average is a shade over 31, and he strikes at under 70 per 100 balls.
Steyn or no Steyn, Hafeez can't buy a run against the South Africans.
Shoaib Malik wandered in at No. 4 and struggled to get the ball off the square.
Like a cricket, perhaps?
Honestly, this wasn't the best game to get new fans hooked onto the game. Malik exited at 48 for 3 in 17.3 overs.
You know Pakistan are sinking when even Misbah can't knock it around.
The asking-rate mounted well over 8.5. What would Misbah do?
Surely even the most die-hand Pakistan fan would have lost hope when Kamran Akmal got out for a duck?
And finally, the last nail in the coffin - the chase was put out of its misery when Misbah was seventh down for 148. Two defeats in two games for Pakistan, which meant it was time to answer some tough questions.
PakistanSouth AfricaSouth Africa vs PakistanICC Champions Trophy

Nitin Sundar is a social media manager at ESPNcricinfo

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