Pakistan, who suffered a shock loss to Zimbabwe, headed into their final Super 12 match against Bangladesh with very little hopes of making the semi-finals. Pakistan needed the Netherlands to pull off an upset win over South Africa or Zimbabwe stun India to keep their hopes alive. While a South African defeat looked improbable, the Netherlands did Pakistan a huge favour by shocking South Africa by 13 runs as Temba Bavum's men crumbled under pressure while chasing 159 in Adelaide. South Africa let go off a golden opportunity to reach the semi-final as they needed to beat the Netherlands to book a place in the final four.
A fiery spell from Shaheen Afridi (4/22) and a pivotal effort from Shadab Khan saw Bangladesh reduced to 127 for 8 in 20 overs in their do-or-die match. Despite Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan struggling to get going again, Pakistan rode on a stunning counter-attack from Mohammad Haris saw Pakistan gun down the total with 11 balls to spare."I just woke up. Thank you, South Africa. You guys are big chokers because you gave Pakistan another chance. It was a big favour. All Pakistan needs to do is just go out there and win this game. "I didn’t think Pakistan deserved this chance after losing to Zimbabwe but Pakistan got a lifeline, a lottery. I think Bangladesh are great people but we need this World Cup, we need to see India once all over again," Akhtar siad in a video posted on social media.
