Sarfraz banks on Windies clean sweep

AFP, ABU DHABI: Pakistan’s Twenty20 captain Sarfraz Ahmed believes the clean sweep over the world champions is the first step towards building a formidable outfit for the future.
Pakistan blanked West Indies 3-0 in the Twenty20 series with another dominating eight wicket win in the third and final match in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.
They had won the first two matches by nine wickets and 16 runs in Dubai.
Ahmed said the win will go a long way towards establishing a Twenty20 team, struggling after being ousted in the first round of the World Twenty20 held in India in March-April this year.
That forced the then skipper Shahid Afridi to step down and Ahmed was handed over the leadership, who won all four matches — also beating England at Manchester earlier this month.
“Of course, this is the first step towards building a new team,” said Ahmed. “If we want to become a good team then we have to bring consistency. Both junior and senior players are performing and contributing and that is the sign of a good team.”
Left-arm spinner Imad Wasim, declared man of the series for his nine wickets in the series, rocked the West Indies’ top order with figures of 3-21. 
Meanwhile, Pakistan produced another dominating performance to beat world champions West Indies by eight wickets in the third and final Twenty20 international, achieving their first ever clean sweep in Dubai on Tuesday.
Left-arm spinner Imad Wasim chipped in with 3-21 — nine wickets in the series — as West Indies crawled to 103-5 in their 20 overs after Pakistan once again caught them napping by putting them in on a slow and low Sheikh Zayed Stadium pitch.
Pakistan then wiped off the target with Shoaib Malik, who made 43 not out, hitting the winning six off the first ball of the 15th over.
Marlon Samuels scored 42 not out while Kieron Pollard made an unbeaten 16.
Pakistan won the first two matches by nine wickets and 16 runs respectively — both in Dubai.
The low target — West Indies’ fourth lowest total in the shortest format — was never out of Pakistan’s reach as Babar Zaman (27 not out) and Malik added 68 in quick time to seal the win.
Malik hit four boundaries and a six in his 34-ball knock while Azam knocked one boundary in his 24-ball innings.
Pakistan had raced to 36 in the sixth over before losing both their openers Sharjeel Khan (11) and Khalid Latif (21) to debutant paceman Kesrick Williams who finished with 2-15.
Samuels and Nicholas Pooran (16) added 35 for the fifth wicket but Pakistan continued to press them hard with accurate bowling.
Samuels and Kieron Pollard added 37 for the unbroken sixth wicket but those runs came in 7.2 slog overs, with only six boundaries and a single six in the entire innings. 
Pakistan had brought Mohammad Amir and Rumman Raees for the final match, resting Wahab Riaz and Hasan Ali.
Ahmed admitted a 3-0 win wasn’t expected before the series.
“We didn’t estimate we would win 3-0,” said Ahmed. “But I will give full credit to the boys for doing everything better than them and that’s why we have won the series.”
Ahmed said he was enjoying the captaincy.
“It’s nice to see senior and juniors cooperating and contributing. It’s a combination of juniors and seniors and I am enjoying it as a leader.”
Pakistan and West Indies will now play three one-day internationals with the first game in Sharjah on Friday.
The one-day internationals will be followed by three Tests, the first a day-night game in Dubai from October 13.

Sarfraz banks on Windies clean sweep

AFP, ABU DHABI: Pakistans Twenty20 captain Sarfraz Ahmed believes the clean sweep over the world champions is the first step towards building a formidable outfit for the future. Pakistan blanked West Indies 3-0 in the Twenty20 series with another dominating eight wicket win in the third and final match in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday. They had won the first two matches by nine wickets and 16 runs in Dubai. Ahmed said the win will go a long way towards establishing a Twenty20 team, struggling after being ousted in the first round of the World Twenty20 held in India in March-April this year. That forced the then skipper Shahid Afridi to step down and Ahmed was handed over the leadership, who won all four matches also beating England at Manchester earlier this month. Of course, this is the first step towards building a new team, said Ahmed. If we want to become a good team then we have to bring consistency. Both junior and senior players are performing and contributing and that is the sign of a good team. Left-arm spinner Imad Wasim, declared man of the series for his nine wickets in the series, rocked the West Indies top order with figures of 3-21. Meanwhile, Pakistan produced another dominating performance to beat world champions West Indies by eight wickets in the third and final Twenty20 international, achieving their first ever clean sweep in Dubai on Tuesday. Left-arm spinner Imad Wasim chipped in with 3-21 nine wickets in the series as West Indies crawled to 103-5 in their 20 overs after Pakistan once again caught them napping by putting them in on a slow and low Sheikh Zayed Stadium pitch. Pakistan then wiped off the target with Shoaib Malik, who made 43 not out, hitting the winning six off the first ball of the 15th over. Marlon Samuels scored 42 not out while Kieron Pollard made an unbeaten 16. Pakistan won the first two matches by nine wickets and 16 runs respectively both in Dubai. The low target West Indies fourth lowest total in the shortest format was never out of Pakistans reach as Babar Zaman (27 not out) and Malik added 68 in quick time to seal the win. Malik hit four boundaries and a six in his 34-ball knock while Azam knocked one boundary in his 24-ball innings. Pakistan had raced to 36 in the sixth over before losing both their openers Sharjeel Khan (11) and Khalid Latif (21) to debutant paceman Kesrick Williams who finished with 2-15. Samuels and Nicholas Pooran (16) added 35 for the fifth wicket but Pakistan continued to press them hard with accurate bowling. Samuels and Kieron Pollard added 37 for the unbroken sixth wicket but those runs came in 7.2 slog overs, with only six boundaries and a single six in the entire innings. Pakistan had brought Mohammad Amir and Rumman Raees for the final match, resting Wahab Riaz and Hasan Ali. Ahmed admitted a 3-0 win wasnt expected before the series. We didnt estimate we would win 3-0, said Ahmed. But I will give full credit to the boys for doing everything better than them and thats why we have won the series. Ahmed said he was enjoying the captaincy. Its nice to see senior and juniors cooperating and contributing. Its a combination of juniors and seniors and I am enjoying it as a leader. Pakistan and West Indies will now play three one-day internationals with the first game in Sharjah on Friday. The one-day internationals willbe followed by three Tests, the first a day-night game in Dubai from October 13.