Abu Dhabi: New Zealand tail-enders Mark Craig and Ish Sodhi walked onto the field on the fifth day of the first Test at the Shaikh Zayed Stadium here on Thursday knowing that their team’s fate was sealed, as they needed to bat for 90 overs to save the match with just two wickets in hand.
Pakistan’s celebrations were put on hold for more than an hour following a stubborn partnership of 54 between Sodhi (63) and No. 11 batsman Trent Boult (19 not out). The Black Caps added 57 to their overnight score of 174 for eight, but Pakistan won emphatically by 248 runs.
With the triumph, skipper Misbah-ul-Haq also became Pakistan’s most successful Test captain with 15 Test wins, leaving behind greats like Imran Khan and Javed Miandad. His achievement is all the more praiseworthy considering he has never captained the side in a Test match at home.
The authoritative victory against the Kiwis, following the 2-0 sweep of Australia, once again showed that Misbah’s side have made their adopted country a fortress.
“It’s a great feeling to be part of the winning team. It’s a young team — nobody expected us to perform like this. I’m really thankful to all the people who supported me on and off the field,” said an elated Misbah, recollecting his team’s struggle when they lost the ODI series and one off T20 against Australia.
“The important thing is to never lose hope, especially as an individual. I always believed in myself, always believed that, if I work hard, it’s definitely going to pay off. Sometimes you have to be patient,” added the 40-year-old.
With the eighth ball of the final day’s play, Craig (28) was removed by Yasir Shah. The ball pitched outside off and spun enough to rattle the timber after slipping through bat and pad.
The lone exception in the Kiwi batting was Sodhi, whose application was much better than some of the highly rated batsmen in the team. He was probably the only plus for New Zealand in the second innings as the leggie got to his second Test fifty in nine matches having some fun — smashing Shah over the midwicket boundary for a six.
The best opportunity for Pakistan came in the 65th over. A sweep from Sodhi off Zulfiqar Babar ballooned in the air after kissing his glove, but there was confusion between Younis Khan and keeper Sarfaraz Ahmad. In the end, neither for the catch and the ball dropped in front of them.
The triumph was finally sealed after the drinks break, with Imran Khan getting one to jag back into Sodhi’s pads to see him out leg before. However, Pakistan’s celebrations could only start after the television review confirming that it would be an umpire’s call.
Man-of-the-match Rahat Ali, who took six wickets in the match, said: “I’m very happy to win the man-of-the-match award as it was my first.
“Very happy that Waqar’s [Younis] coaching and Mushtaq’s [Ahmad] support are helping me a lot. They gave me a lot of plans. Mainly, it was to bowl a lot of dot balls and bowl wicket-to-wicket. I’ve worked very hard with the coaching staff and I want to keep performing like this in the future.”
