‘Game-changer’ Mohammad Nawaz savours all-rounder role after Asia Cup win against India

Published
8
Pakistan’s Mohammad Nawaz smiles as he wears his helmet during the Asia Cup Twenty20 international cricket Super Four match between India and Pakistan at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in Dubai on September 4, 2022. — AFP
Pakistan’s Mohammad Nawaz smiles as he wears his helmet during the Asia Cup Twenty20 international cricket Super Four match between India and Pakistan at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in Dubai on September 4, 2022. — AFP

Mohammad Nawaz wants to be a “proper all-rounder” after his batting blitz set up a thrilling win for Pakistan against arch-rivals India in the Asia Cup Super Four.

Chasing 182 for victory, Pakistan achieved the target with one ball and five wickets to spare in Dubai after Mohammad Rizwan hit 71 and Nawaz made 42.

Nawaz, a left-arm spinner who usually bats at eight but was promoted to number four, joined Rizwan when the score was 63-2 and the two put on a key stand.

The 28-year-old Nawaz smashed six fours and two sixes in his 20-ball knock to put the chase on track.

Nawaz, who returned bowling figures of 1-25 in India’s 181-7, also took three catches and was named man of the match.

“To play such an innings in a high-pressure game has definitely given me confidence,” Nawaz told reporters after Sunday’s victory in the regional T20 tournament which acts as a tune-up for the World Cup in October.

“I have got the opportunity to grow as a player and I will try my best to live up to the rising expectations.

“I will work hard and try to perform better as a proper all-rounder for the Pakistan team.”

Nawaz fell in the 16th over and soon Rizwan was out after his second successive half-century.

Khushdil Shah (unbeaten 14) and Asif Ali, who made 16 off eight balls, hauled Pakistan over the line in a tense final over as they avenged their loss to India earlier in the tournament.

“We wanted to take it as deep as we could because the kind of players we have in Khushdil and Asif, even if we need 10-12 runs per over, they can easily get it,” Rizwan said.

India’s Virat Kohli, who returned to form with 60 off 44 balls to hold the Indian innings together until he got run out in the last over, said Nawaz’s knock made the difference.

“They took a chance to promote him and extend his batting stay and if the situation gets difficult they have [recognised] batsmen left,” Kohli told reporters. “So the way he batted it was a game-changing moment, the way I read the game.”

The top two teams in the Super Four, which also has Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, will make the Asia Cup final on September 11.

Opinion

Editorial

Fixing bond markets
Updated 01 Oct, 2026

Fixing bond markets

Pension funds, insurance companies, mutual funds, retail investors, and eventually, foreign investors must become bigger participants in the market.
Call centre rackets
01 Oct, 2026

Call centre rackets

A NUMBER of recent raids conducted by the authorities in different cities point to the growing threat fraudulent ...
Homeward bound
01 Oct, 2026

Homeward bound

FIVE months after Somali pirates captured an oil tanker carrying a 19-member multinational crew, Somali maritime...
Kashmir unresolved
Updated 30 Sep, 2026

Kashmir unresolved

The just solution lies in India addressing the issue through a trilateral dialogue involving the legitimate representatives of the Kashmiri people and Pakistan.
Water shortage
30 Sep, 2026

Water shortage

THAT the country is entering the Rabi season with an anticipated water shortage of nearly 25pc, the lowest carryover...
Young hearts
30 Sep, 2026

Young hearts

THE observance may have passed, but the message of World Heart Day should not fade with it. The occasion is a useful...