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Zimbabwe won the toss and elected to bat in the 4th ODI in Faisalabad, and as ever were soon off to a poor start as Sibanda and Maskadza departed early on. An 85-run partnership between Tatenda Taibu (51) and Sean Williams (48) gave the side some much-needed stabilty, though, and helped form the basis for what turned out to be a half-decent innings. Useful lower-order contributions were made by Chamu Chibhabha (30) and Elton Chigumbura (24), while at the tail end Keith Dabengwa finally proved his worth with a rapid-fire 45, including 19 in the final over to give Zim a much-needed boost. There was some bad luck along the way - Gary Brent was given out to a run-out decision where the replay suggested he was in - while Shoaib Malik was the best with the ball for Pakistan, taking 3/55 from 9.5 overs. Zimbabwe were bowled out for 244 with just 1 ball remaining - that left Pakistan to chase a target of 245, at 4.9/over. Definitely gettable.

Zimbabwe’s bowling started off well enough, with the early wickets of Nasir Jamshed (11) and Khalid Laitf (19) giving the side early hope. But from there on, they were unable to take wickets and, while the usual mid-innings choke tactic was applied by Price, Mpofu and Chigumbura, once their over were used up Zim were into the part-timers, who were treated with appropriate disdain. Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Yousuf put on 141 for the 3rd wicket before Malik was eventually run out for 88, but even from there Yousuf and Fawad Alam were very rarely bothered & saw the innings out - Yousuf scoring 108, Alam 12 - to take Pakistan to a 4-0 series lead.
Zimbabwe 244 (49.5 overs; Williams 48, Shoaib Malik 3/55), Pakistan 245/3 (47.0 overs; Mohammad Yousuf 108*, Chigumbura 1/36). Pakistan win by 7 wickets, lead series 4-0 with 1 to play.

Scorecard & highlights below the cut. Next match: Pakistan v India, 5th ODI: 2 February 2008 at Sheikhupura.

Zimbabwe innings (50 overs maximum)
V Sibanda	lbw b Kamran Hussain	                3
H Masakadza	lbw b Kamran Hussain	                2
SC Williams	c & b Shoaib Malik	                48
T Taibu	        c & b Shoaib Malik	                51
BRM Taylor	lbw b Shoaib Malik	                7
CJ Chibhabha	b Shahid Afridi	                        30
E Chigumbura	st Sarfraz Ahmed b Fawad Alam	        24
KM Dabengwa	run out (Sohail Khan/Sarfraz Ahmed)	45
GB Brent	run out (Shoaib Malik/Shahid Afridi)	14
RW Price	b Sohail Khan	                        7
CB Mpofu	not out	                                0
    Extras	(b 1, lb 2, w 9, nb 1)	                13
    Total	(all out; 49.5 overs)	                244

Fall of wickets: 1-7 (Sibanda, 3.4 ov), 2-12 (Masakadza, 5.1 ov),
3-97 (Williams, 21.5 ov), 4-109 (Taylor, 23.4 ov),
5-132 (Taibu, 29.6 ov), 6-173 (Chibhabha, 39.3 ov),
7-175 (Chigumbura, 40.2 ov), 8-205 (Brent, 45.5 ov),
9-225 (Price, 48.3 ov), 10-244 (Dabengwa, 49.5 ov)

Bowling	        O	M	R	W	Econ
Sohail Tanvir	6	2	14	0	2.33	(6w)
Kamran Hussain	7	0	32	2	4.57
Sohail Khan	7	0	38	1	5.42	(1nb, 2w)
Shahid Afridi	10	0	57	1	5.70
Shoaib Malik	9.5	0	55	3	5.59	(1w)
Fawad Alam	10	0	45	1	4.50

Pakistan innings (target: 245 runs from 50 overs)
Nasir Jamshed	c Brent b Chigumbura	        11
Khalid Latif	c Williams b Mpofu	        19
Shoaib Malik	run out (Chigumbura/Taibu)	88
Mohammad Yousuf	not out	                        108
Fawad Alam	not out	                        12
    Extras	(lb 2, w 5)	                7
    Total	(3 wickets; 47 overs; 207 mins)	245

Did not bat: Misbah-ul-Haq, Shahid Afridi, Sohail Tanvir,
Sarfraz Ahmed, Sohail Khan, Kamran Hussain 

Fall of wickets: 1-18 (Nasir Jamshed, 4.3 ov),
2-66 (Khalid Latif, 14.1 ov), 3-207 (Shoaib Malik, 39.6 ov)

Bowling	        O	M	R	W	Econ
E Chigumbura	8	0	36	1	4.50	(2w)
GB Brent	10	0	53	0	5.30	(1w)
CB Mpofu	10	0	36	1	3.60
RW Price	10	0	50	0	5.00	(1w)
CJ Chibhabha	2	0	14	0	7.00
H Masakadza	2	0	21	0	10.50
KM Dabengwa	4	0	23	0	5.75	(1w)
SC Williams	1	0	10	0	10.00

Zimbabwe Innings
Kamran Hussain and Sohail Tanvir to open the bowling for Pakistan, while Vusi Sibanda and Hamilton Masakadza take the crease for Zimbabwe.
3.4 overs 7/1 V Sibanda lbw b Kamran Hussain 3
LBW seems to be becoming a habit for Sibanda. Sean Williams is next in.

5.1 overs 12/2 H Masakadza lbw b Kamran Hussain 2
Curving ball catches Masakadza out, and Zimbabwe are in their usual early trouble. Tatenda Taibu comes to the crease, with a rescue job to do…

10.0 overs 25/2 Run-rate of 2.5 is hardly going to win a match, but Zim have been forced into some early consolidation. Both Williams and Taibu can handle the bat well, though, so they should be able to force the pace once they’re settled. Powerplay 2 taken by Pakistan.

12.0 overs 36/2 Bowling change - Sohail Khan replaces Sohail Tanvir.
14.0 overs 54/2 11 off the over, 10 by Williams - they’ve been going quit well the past few overs, actually, although the current rate of 3.85 is still far too low.
15.0 overs 55/2 Bowling change - Shahid Afridi replaces Kamran Hussain, and the final Powerplay is taken.
18.0 overs 78/2 Williams is enjoying himself - a six, a four and a few singles see Zim take 13 from the over.
19.0 overs 85/2 Bowling change - Shoaib Malik replaces Afridi.

20.0 overs 89/2 Taibu and Williams are putting up a good fight here. Rate up to 4.45/over, which is more like it…

21.5 overs 97/3 SC Williams c & b Shoaib Malik 48
Williams is caught out just short of his half-ton - Malik flights the ball a bit more than usual, Williams can’t decide what to do with it and ends up knocking it back to the bowler. Brendan Taylor to the middle.

22.0 overs 98/3 Bowling change - Fawad Alam replaces Sohail Khan.

23.4 overs 109/4 BRM Taylor lbw b Shoaib Malik 7
Taylor’s not having the best of runs this series - that’s another low score for him. Played and missed, hit the pads, and that’s that. Chamu Chibhabha is next, and Zim are in trouble again.

30.0 overs 132/5 T Taibu c & b Shoaib Malik 51
Almost a carbon-copy of Williams’ dismissal - clever play by Malik. Elton Chigumbura comes to the middle. Zim had been doing okay up to this point, but it’s going to get difficult from here.

33.0 overs 148/5 Bowling change - Afridi back to replace Malik.

39.3 overs 173/6 CJ Chibhabha b Shahid Afridi 30
Quicker ball by Afridi, it’s past Chibhabha and into his stumps before he can even get the bat down. Keith Dabengwa is next.

40.0 overs 175/6 Current rate is 4.37, so target is 219. Not good enough, but Zim don’t have the wickets in hand to really let loose…

40.2 overs 175/7 E Chigumbura st Sarfraz Ahmed b Fawad Alam 24
Played, missed, fell over outside his crease, stumped. Oops. Gary Brent is next.

41.0 overs 181/7 That’s the end of Alam’s 10 overs - 1/45, no maidens. Malik will replace him.

45.0 overs 201/7 Current rate 4.47, so target is 223.

45.5 overs 205/8 GB Brent run out 14
Replay apparently suggests Brent was in, but that’s not the call. Ray Price is next, and has some work to do. Also the opportunity for Dabengwa to prove his worth…

46.0 overs 206/8 Bowling change - Sohail Khan replaces Malik. Current rate is still 4.47, so still looking at 223.
47.0 overs 216/8 10 off the over - just what we need. Current rate: 4.59, target 229.
48.0 overs 221/8 Current rate: 4.60, target 230.

48.3 overs 225/9 RW Price b Sohail Khan 7
Yorker gets to Price before he can get his bat to it, and he loses his off stump - that’s Khan’s first wicket in international cricket. Last man in is Chris Mpofu.

49.0 overs 226/9 Current rate: 4.61, target 231.

49.5 overs 244/10 KM Dabengwa run out 45
Dabengwa goes to town in the final over with 4-6-2-6-1W - he may have been run out, but it was in a good cause and he’s done some good work this over to get Zim to a decent score.

That’s it for Zimbabwe’s innings. Pakistan require 245 to win, at 4.9/over - definitely chasable, especially with Utseya and Mupariwa missing from the Zimbabwean attack, but we’ll see how it goes after the break.

Pakistan Innings
Khalid Natif and Nasir Jamshed open for Pakistan, bowling by Elton Chigumbura and Gary Brent.

4.1 overs 18/1 Nasir Jamshed c Brent b Chigumbura 11
Big wicket for Chigumbura to start with, as Jamshed has caused all sorts of problems for Zimbabwe this series. Flicked straight and low to Brent at short fine leg. Shoaib Malik is next in for Pakistan.

9.1 overs 43/1 Khalid Latif is dropped by Brent - although it wasn’t a easy chance. Got fingers to it but couldn’t hold it.

10.0 overs 46/1 Cautious start by Pakistan, and the loss of Jamshed gives Zimbabwe a ray of light. Current rate 4.6/over, required rate 4.98/over. Bowling change: Chris Mpofu replaces Chigumbura, and the 2nd Powerplay is taken.

14.0 overs 66/1 10 from that over, off Brent - Malik looks to be getting into his stride.

14.1 overs 66/2 Khalid Latif c Williams b Mpofu 19
That should slow down the charge a bit. Latif has made a few cross-batted swipes, but makes one too many and puts the ball straight down Williams’ throat. Mohammad Yousuf is next to the crease.

15.0 overs 69/2 Bowling change - Chigumbura replaces Brent, and the 3rd Powerplay is taken.

20.0 overs 89.2 Pakistan have slowed down in the past few overs - good control by the Zim bowlers. That’s the end of the Powerplays. Current rate: 4.51, required rate: 5.16.
21.0 overs 93/2 Bowling change - Ray Price replaces Chigumbura, no doubt hoping to add to the pressure…
26.0 overs 114/2 Bowling change - Chamu Chibhabha replaces Mpofu.

30.0 overs 139/2 Bowling change - Hamilton Masakadza replaces Chibhabha, who was taking a bit of a beating. Current rate: 4.63, required rate 5.30 - still fairly well balanced. A few wickets would be nice…
33.0 overs 165/3 12 off the over, with Masakadza taking a beating as well. Pakistan’s biggest over so far.
34.0 overs 170/2 …who switches ends to replace Masakadza.
37.0 overs 190/2 11 off the over - an unusually expensive on from Ray Price.
39.0 overs 199/2 Bowling change - Brent replaces Dabengwa.

40.0 overs 207/3 Shoaib Malik run out 88
Malik is left stranded as Yousuf refuses to budge, and a very grateful Taibu takes off the bails. Probably too little too late, but there you go. Fawad Alam is next in - Pakistan require 38 runs at 3.8/over, which shouldn’t be a problem.

41.0 overs 210/3 That’s the end of Price’s 10 overs - 50 runs conceded, no maidens, no wickets.
42.0 overs 215/2 Bowling change - Sean Williams replaces Price. That’s Zim’s 8th bowler of the innings.
43.0 overs 225/3 An expensive 10 off that over. Pakistan now require 20 off 7 overs (2.85/over).
44.0 overs 231/3 And that’s Brent’s 10 up - 52 runs conceded, no wickets, no maidens. Mpofu replaces Williams at the other end.
45.0 overs 234/3 Bowling change - Dabengwa replaces Brent. Pakistan require 11 from 5 overs.

46.0 overs 241/3 Pakistan require 4 runs to win, from 4 overs. The fat lady is tuning up…
47.0 overs 245/3 And that’s that - a four off the final ball of an otherwise good over ties it up for Pakistan, who win by 7 wickets.