Pakistan defeated Canada by seven wickets to win their first match in Group A of the preliminary round of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 on Tuesday, June 11, thanks to a masterful bowling display led by Mohammad Amir (2-13) and Haris Rauf (2-26) and an undefeated half-century by Mohammad Rizwan (53 not out).
Pakistan was dangling in Group A, three teams ahead of them in the battle for Super 8 qualifying, after two straight losses to the USA and India. They now have a chance to qualify if other outcomes go their way after defeating Canada. The former champions advanced slowly toward their objective; after 17 and a half overs, they reached 107/3 to win by seven wickets.
Thanks mainly to an outstanding half-century by Aaron Johnson, who has now achieved eight fifty-plus scores in Twenty20 Internationals, the most for Canada and breaking Navneet Dhaliwal’s record, Canada managed to score 106/7 from 20 overs. Johnson hit four boundaries and as many sixes in his 52-ball score off of 44 balls.
With one more group match (against Ireland) left, Pakistan knew going into the game that they needed to win at Nassau County International Stadium, and perhaps by a substantial margin, to get their campaign back on track.
