Pakistan speed bowler Naseem Shah hit Afghanistan left arm seamer Fazalhaq Farooqi with consecutive sixes in the closing over of Wednesday’s game to send his side to the semi-final in the Asia Cup in a thrilling match.
AFP Sport looks at five memorable six-hitting events in the history of Pakistan’s cricket.
Mighty Miandad
Javed Miandad’s last ball six from Indian’s Chetan Sharma at the 1986 Austral-Asia cup final in Sharjah continues to cause pain for India fans.
With 246 required to win, Pakistan were in trouble at 61-3. Miandad hit a 116 unbeaten from 114 deliveries.
With four to go off the last delivery, India quick bowler Sharma bowled the ball in a full toss. Miandad hit it high over the leg side, and then into the crowd to cause wild celebrations.
Mujtaba leveller
A left-handed, gutsy middle-order batsman, Asif Mujtaba took on Australia’s bowlers during an over 50 World Series match in 1992 and struck a six off the final ball bowled by Steve Waugh to tie a thrilling match.
Aiming for 228 at Hobart, Pakistan slipped to 197-7 , but Mujtaba held firm, and, with 17 minutes left in on the last over Australia skipper was able to throw the ball to seamer Waugh.
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Mujtaba struck him in all areas and then threw the final delivery with a full toss over midwicket in order to level the score.
‘Boom Boom’ Afridi
Shahid Afridi won many exciting matches for Pakistan by batting with a nimble style but his two sixes on India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin in a 2014 Asia Cup 50-over match remain unique.
Pakistan was in pursuit of 246, and required 10 runs when Ashwin began the 50th ball by taking an wicket.
However, Afridi hit the off spinner for two straight sixes, living the “Boom Boom nickname. Pakistan triumphed with just two balls and one wicket to left.
Asif is
Asif Ali was a relative unknown when Asif Ali was a relative unknown when he scored the four consecutive sixes on the Afghan’s Karim Janat in order to reveal his debut at the last T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates.
Pakistan required 26 of 18 balls at the time Asif was called into the field to bat.
Asif was a calm spectator from the side of the non-striker’s at the end of the 18th over, before hitting Janat across the rope four times, taking Pakistan home with an extra over.
Naseem heroism
Naseem Shah was Pakistan’s latest six-hitting hero after he came into the bat at 10, with Pakistan required 20 off just 10 balls, with only two wickets remaining in their pursuit of 130 against Afghanistan on Wednesday.
Pakistan was beaten by Asif at the end of the 19th over, but Naseem was cool and composed, needing 12 from the final over to thrash Farooqi’s yorkers in a row of sixes in the long-off.
