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Cricket World Cup 2019 Results: Sunday's Top Run-Scorers and Players
June 23, 2019
Pakistan breathed new life into their 2019 Cricket World Cup campaign after defeating South Africa by 49 runs on Sunday to clinch their second victory of the tournament and move up to seventh in the table.
Haris Sohail was the star of their attack and notched 89 runs as Pakistan ran up a total of 308 before picking away at the South African order to win at Lord's Cricket Ground in London.
Lungi Ngidi took three wickets for South Africa while Imran Tahir found the mark twice, but the defensive performance wasn't enough to preserve their hopes of a semi-final spot.
South Africa captain Faf du Plessis (63 runs) and Quinton de Kock (47) got their chase off to a bright start, after Hashim Amla had been sent packing leg-before-wicket (lbw) for just two.
Australia's David Warner remains the top run-scorer at the Cricket World Cup with a monstrous tally of 447, while Shakib Al Hasan of Bangladesh is second with 425.
Standings (Won, Lost, Net Run Rate, Points)
1. New Zealand: 5, 0, +1.306, 11
2. Australia: 5, 1, +0.849, 10
3. India: 4, 0, +0.809, 9
4. England: 4, 2, +1.457, 8
5. Sri Lanka: 2, 2, -1.119, 6
6. Bangladesh: 2, 3, -0.407, 5
7. Pakistan: 2, 3, -1.265, 5
8. West Indies: 1, 4, +0.190, 3
9. South Africa: 1, 5, -0.324, 3
10. Afghanistan: 0, 6, -1.712, 0
The top four qualify for the semi-finals.
Top Run-Scorers
1. David Warner, Australia: 447
2. Shakib Al Hasan, Bangladesh: 425
3. Joe Root, England: 424
4. Aaron Finch, Australia: 396
5. Kane Williamson, New Zealand: 373
6. Rohit Sharma, India: 320
7. Eoin Morgan, England: 270
8. Mushfiqur Rahim, Bangladesh: 244
9. Steve Smith, Australia: 244
10. Virat Kohli, India: 244
Top Wicket-Takers
1. Jofra Archer, England: 15
2. Mitchell Starc, Australia: 15
3. Mohammad Amir, Pakistan: 15
4. Lockie Ferguson, New Zealand: 14
5. Mark Wood, England: 12
6. Pat Cummins, Australia: 11
7. Imran Tahir, South Africa: 10
8. Chris Morris, South Africa: 9
9. Sheldon Cottrell, West Indies: 9
10. Mohammad Saifuddin, Bangladesh: 9
Visit the tournament's official website to see the list in full.
Pakistan (308-7) beat South Africa (259-9) by 49 runs
Despite a series a fielding mistakes that could have upset the result had they come earlier in South Africa's innings, Pakistan held on to win by their largest margin so far at this Cricket World Cup.
It's taken coach Mickey Arthur's team some time to catch up on the pace—they have only three games remaining—but statistician Mazher Arshad pointed out their potential route into the semi-finals:
Sohail, 30, spoke to ESPN Cricinfo after the result and said: "It was very difficult to sit out of the games but I knew I would get the opportunity and I was backing myself to do well. When I went in there, the plan was to build a partnership with Babar. It was not easy but we did well."
He notched three maximums and was only one of two Pakistani batsmen to get over the half-century mark alongside team-mate Babar Azam, who scored 69:
Cricket writer Mohandas Menon also praised the display from Sohail:
Pakistan's bowlers also had a positive day at the office and made their impact in key moments. Shadab Khan and Wahab Riaz took three wickets apiece, with the latter removing each of South Africa's last three hitters in the space of 24 runs.
However, it was Mohammad Amir who dented South Africa by getting captain Du Plessis out in the 30th over. Sportswriter Saj Sadiq highlighted Amir's consistency at this World Cup so far:
Amir has now taken 15 wickets at this World Cup and is tied for the most players dismissed.
Pakistan will look to follow up their victory by sealing back-to-back wins for the first time at this tournament when they face New Zealand on Wednesday.
South Africa can't make up the necessary five points they currently require to finish among the top four, meaning morale is sure to be low when they face Sri Lanka on Friday.