Pakistan kept their winning run against New Zealand in World Cup semifinals intact as they defeated the Kiwis by 7 wickets on Wednesday and made their way to Sunday’s final.
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It has been a long wait for Pakistan fans to see their team in a World Cup final, 13 years to be exact, and they were ecstatic after the victory.
In a video shared on Twitter, there were thousands on Pakistan fans packed into a shopping mall in Karachi where a giant screen was put up for people to watch the match. As soon as Shan Masood hit the winning run off Tim Southee’s delivery in the 20th over, celebrations broke out.
It was a huge relief for Pakistan whose performance in the initial stage of the tournament left a lot to be desired. After losing to India and Zimbabwe, they were on the brink of getting eliminated. But they pulled themselves out of the hole when they defeated South Africa in the Super 12 stage and then went on to defeat Bangladesh in a virtual quarterfinal to scrape through to the semis.
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Though the victory of Netherlands against South Africa in the last day of the Super 12 stage had offered them a chance, they still had to defeat the Bangla Tigers, which they did.
On Wednesday though, their oft criticised opening pair of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan showed their class and put up a partnership of 105 runs, which went a long way in helping the Men in Green reach their required target of 152 with 5 balls to spare.
Pakistan will now face the winner of India vs England in the final on Sunday.
