Pakistan and Zimbabwe batsmen had a field day on a placid batting track in the first one-day international at Lahore before the hosts ended victorious by 41 runs.
Pakistan’s Shoaib Malik and the visitors’ captain Elton Chigumbara led the batting effort for their sides but Wahab Riaz chipped in with three wickets to derail Zimbabwe’s run chase of 376.
Malik made an impressive return to limited-overs cricket with a blistering century, propelling Pakistan to 375 for three in the first one-day international against Zimbabwe.
Malik, who had not played an ODI since the 2013 Champions Trophy in England, made 112 off 76 balls with 12 fours and two sixes before he was caught off the last ball of the innings.
Haris Sohail also prospered against some wayward bowling with 89 off 66 balls featuring six fours and two sixes and shared 201 runs with Malik to give Pakistan a solid total to defend in the first of three ODIs.
Mohammad Hafeez made 86 and was part of a first-wicket stand of 170 runs with captain Azhar Ali, who scored 79, after winning the toss and batting.
Off-spinner Prosper Utseya (2-63) removed both openers off successive deliveries before Malik took charge, scoring his first ODI century since the 2009 Champions Trophy in temperatures over 40-degree Celsius.
Hafeez hit eight fours and four sixes, two of which were off successive deliveries, when he lofted left-arm spinner Sean Williams over his head before Utseya struck. Ali top-edged a slog sweep and holed out in the deep before the off-spinner bowled Hafeez round his legs.
Malik and Sohail combined for 201 runs in Pakistan’s best third-wicket stand against Zimbabwe as they hammered the opposition for 112 runs in the last 10 overs.
Malik raised his eighth ODI century off 70 balls in the penultimate over when he nudged Christopher Mpofu for two at midwicket.
Pakistan defeated Zimbabwe 2-0 in the Twenty20 series, which marked the return of international cricket in Pakistan after six years since an attack on the Sri Lanka team in 2009.
sports@thenational.ae
Follow us on Twitter @NatSportUAE
