Pakistan defeated the Netherlands by three wickets in a thrilling encounter in the opening match of the ICC T20 World Cup, thanks to explosive batting by Faheem Ashraf. Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha won the toss and elected to field first. Batting first, the Netherlands set Pakistan a target of 147 runs. Pakistan chased down the target in a nail-biting finish in the final over.
While chasing the target set by the Netherlands, Pakistan opened the innings with Sahibzada Farhan and Saim Ayub. However, Saim Ayub was dismissed for 24 runs off 13 balls at a total of 27 runs, hitting four fours and one six in his innings. Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha was also dismissed for 12 runs at a team total of 53, falling to Aryan Dutt. Sahibzada Farhan scored 46 runs before getting out, while Usman Khan was bowled for a duck. Both wickets fell in the same over to Paul van Meekeren. In the very next over, Van der Merwe caught Babar Azam. Mohammad Nawaz was dismissed for 6 runs off 13 balls, while Shadab Khan returned to the pavilion after scoring 8 runs off 12 balls. After the fall of seven wickets, Faheem Ashraf played a blistering innings, scoring 29 runs off just 9 balls with the help of three sixes and two fours, guiding Pakistan to their first victory of the World Cup.
