Pakistan Skipper Babar Azam shares his view about the Umpire’s Call DRS Decision in the Pakistan vs South Africa Clash at MA Chidambaram Stadium.
If the on-field umpire had declared Tabraiz Shamsi out, the Men in Green could have won the game.
In the 46th over, with South Africa needing 8 runs to win, Haris Rauf bowled a delivery that hit Tabraiz Shamsi on the front foot, leaving a gap between the bat and the pad. Pakistan decided to use the Decision Review System (DRS) for a referral.
The ball tracking system was employed, revealing that the impact was in line with the stumps, even though the ball had initially pitched outside off and just touched the leg stump.
Consequently, the on-field umpire’s decision was upheld, allowing the batter to survive and ultimately leading South Africa to their fifth win, thanks to a crucial contribution from Keshav Maharaj.
When asked about his team’s experience with the DRS, Babar Azam refrained from placing blame on the technology.
He said, “DRS could work in your favor or against you. It’s part and parcel of the game. We’ve had some decisions go our way, and some have gone against us.”
He also added,
“We will focus on playing the remaining games well and assess our final standing in the tournament.”
Babar expressed his belief that Pakistan fell short by 10-15 runs with the bat as they finished with a total of 270. He praised the efforts of the pacers, saying,
“We made a good comeback, but we were slightly short by 10-15 runs. I think our fast bowlers performed admirably, but unfortunately, the result didn’t go in our favor.”
The crucial win propelled the Proteas to the top position in the points table with a significant net run rate (NRR) of 2.032.
While chasing the target of 271, Temba Bavuma and his team faced some challenges, but Aiden Markram’s impressive innings of 91 pushed them closer to victory.
In the later stages of the match, Pakistan came close to winning, needing just one wicket to secure victory with 11 runs to go. However, Keshav Maharaj held his nerve and stayed until the last moment, ultimately scoring the winning shot, sealing the victory for the Proteas.
Pakistan vs South Africa playing XI
Pakistan XI:
- Abdullah Shafique
- Imam-ul-Haq
- Babar Azam (c)
- Mohammad Rizwan
- Saud Shakeel
- Iftikhar Ahmed
- Shadab Khan
- Mohammad Nawaz
- Shaheen Afridi
- Haris Rauf
- Wasim Jr
South Africa XI:
- Quinton de Kock
- Temba Bavuma (c)
- Rassie van der Dussen
- Aiden Markram
- Heinrich Klaasen
- David Miller
- Marco Jansen
- Gerald Coetzee
- Keshav Maharaj
- Tabraiz Shmshi
- Lungi Ngidi