Tarouba, August 9 (H.S.) : Pakistan’s young batter Hasan Nawaz had a dream ODI debut, scoring an unbeaten 63 to guide his team to a five-wicket victory over the West Indies in the first match of the three-match series.
Chasing 281, Pakistan reached the target in the 49th over. Nawaz, in partnership with Hussain Talat (41*), added an unbroken 104-run stand for the sixth wicket, rescuing the team from a tricky position. Nawaz faced 54 balls, hitting 3 sixes and 5 fours, while Talat struck 1 six and 4 fours in his 37-ball knock.
Batting first, the West Indies were bowled out for 280. Evin Lewis scored 60 off 62 balls, Shai Hope made 55, and Roston Chase added 53. For Pakistan, Shaheen Shah Afridi claimed 4 wickets and Naseem Shah took 3.
Earlier in the chase, Mohammad Rizwan scored 53 before falling LBW to Shamar Joseph in the 38th over, leaving Pakistan needing 101 runs. Nawaz and Talat then steered the side home, with Nawaz finishing the game with a boundary.
The second ODI will be played on August 10 and the series concludes on August 12.
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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar