Akmal, Butt take Pakistan to Win

Pakistan started their title defense in imposing fashion against Bangladesh in St Lucia, as Salman Butt and Kamran Akmal put the platform for the highest total score of the tournament so far. Butt, a surprise selection at 142 with Akmal and Shahid Afridi made it’s decision to bat was not lost. Bangladesh, poor for much of the innings, does well to chase 173.

Akmal and Butt got the balance just right on an intelligent stand. Both attacked regularly, but with thought. Akmal’s stance was predictable, almost immediately try to set the agenda. A bold statement was made by left-arm spin – Bangladesh’s most potent weapon – once, twice if he wiped out Abdur Razzak into the second one. He was the one who took risks, almost pay for it when a chance from a miscued pull fluffed by Mohammad Ashraful. They had to pay for it as Akmal did what he does best. Out came the cuts, the scything cover drives, pulls and the occasional stunning blow over extra cover. All singles and doubles, while a large area flooded, so Akmal as comfortable as he makes 73 in this format.

Butt, but was pleasantly surprised. He appeared ill-suited to the format, unable to work and gaps are not blessed with the power game that poorer batsmen get runs. But he has a good ODI record and it was the intention from the start, when he lofted his first ball over extra cover.

Since then, periodically, he would dance down, go away, go find loopholes or antenna. When Akmal snorted and puffed and threw herself into success, 

Butt went about as smooth as you can in reaching fifty off 29 balls. There was no violence, just clear intention and belief in his regular strokes.

His improved leg-side game was shown, and, in three successive overs after the 10th, he hit Shakib al Hasan, slog-swept Razzak for a maximum  

and then hit debutante Suhrawadi Shuvo well in another. A pair of improvised legside flicks he hinted new tricks and his second fifty T20I to learn, was an unexpected bonus. All types of monuments came in that period, Pakistan hundreds, fifties and Akmal’s without doing anything too stupid, a mammoth total threatened.

Bangladesh had started badly, nervous in the field and with the ball at the start, unable to string together a whole to any acquisition of good balls. It was not until the 16th over, in fact, when they finally Akmal

claimed that one more cast, without giving at least one border. She recovered, not to allow more limits in the final overs, but the damage was done.