On this day in 2018: Fakhar Zaman smashes 210 against Zimbabwe
Fakhar Zaman became an overnight sensation after his match-winning 114 against arch-rivals India in the ICC Champions Trophy 2017 final. A late entrant at the international arena in 2017 as he served Pakistan navy as a sailor before deciding to pursue his passion, Fakhar was at the peak of his career between 2017 to 2018 where he also became the fastest batter to amass 1000 ODI runs.
Meanwhile, it was on this very day in 2018 that he registered the highest-ever individual score for Pakistan.
When Fakhar Zaman scored Pakistan’s first ODI double century
Zimbabwe and Pakistan locked horns at Bulawayo in the fourth ODI as Pakistan skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed won the toss and elected to bat first. It was indeed a good toss to win for the Men in Green as Fakhar and Imam-ul-Haq left the opposition demoralised with a 304-run opening stand that also saw Imam score 113.
However, it was Fakhar who completely toyed around with the Zimbabwe bowlers, smashing them to all parts of the ground. Even Zimbabwe’s best bowler in that series Blessing Muzarabani could not do anything and was erratic with his line and length to finish with forgettable bowling figures of 77 runs from his 10 overs.
While Pakistan registered the then highest-ever opening partnership in ODIs, Fakhar surpassed batting legend Saeed Anwar’s previous highest individual ODI score for Pakistan (194 vs India in 1997) and brought up the first individual double century for the Men in Green in the 50-overs format. Pakistan eventually went on to post their highest ODI score of 399/1 as Zaman remained unbeaten on 210 runs from 156 deliveries at a strike rate of 131.61.
In reply, it was a walk in the park for the Pakistani bowlers as Zimbabwe batters failed to show any intent in a mammoth chase except middle-order batter Donald Tiripano, who scored a valiant 44. The hosts were eventually bundled out for 155 in the 43rd over as Pakistan registered a comprehensive run by a mammoth margin of 244 runs. Fakhar was adjudged the Player of the Match for his splendid knock.
