'Thank you very much to Ricky': Zimbabwe player reveals Ponting's help in beating Pakistan

Zimbabwe on Thursday pulled off one of the biggest heists seen in world cricket as they stunned Pakistan by 1 run to win their Super 12 match of the ongoing ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2022. Sikandar Raza emerged as the standout player for the Chevrons as he picked three quick wickets in the middle overs to help Zimbabwe get back into the game when it appeared Pakistan would have no trouble reaching the target. 

Sikandar Raza thanks Ponting for help

Raza's impressive spell with the ball eventually saw Zimbabwe hand a one-run defeat to the Men in Green. Raza was named the player of the match for his outstanding bowling effort. Raza revealed in the post-match presentation how a video from former Australian captain Ricky Ponting helped him play his best cricket against Pakistan. Raza said he was excited, nervous, and thrilled about last night's game after seeing the video of Ponting appreciating his skills. 

"I know there was a small clip that was sent to me this morning and it was Ricky Ponting having a small word. I was excited. I was nervous. I was thrilled about today. Motivation was always there, but if I needed that little push, I thought that clip did a wonder this morning. So thank you very much to Ricky as well," Raza said in his post-match interview. Below is the video of Ponting talking about Raza ahead of Zimbabwe's game against Pakistan. 

Pakistan vs Zimbabwe

As far as the match is concerned, Zimbabwe won the toss and chose to bat first in the gripping thriller. Zimbabwe were restricted to 130/8 in 20 overs when batting first courtesy of some fierce bowling from Pakistan's speed attack. Zimbabwe's leading scorer, Sean Williams, put on 31 runs off of 28 balls. For Pakistan, Mohammad Wasim, who was playing in his maiden T20 World Cup match, picked up a four-wicket haul. Shadab Khan claimed three wickets, while Haris Rauf also bowled superbly to pick one wicket for 12 runs in his quota of four overs.

Zimbabwe struck early in the second innings to eliminate Pakistani openers Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam for 14 and 4 runs, respectively. For Pakistan, Shan Masood once again did the bulk of scoring until Sikandar Raza dismissed him for 44 off 38 balls. Raza took two more wickets to further increase the pressure on Pakistan's batting lineup. Eventually, Pakistan gave in to the pressure and dropped the match in the last over. Raza was named the player of the match for his outstanding bowling spell. 

Image: Twitter/ICC/BCCI