On Wednesday, The World witnessed sensational hitting from the cricketing legend Kevin Pietersen. Pietersen smashed seven huge sixes and nine fours in his innings of 86 off just 38 balls, with a strike rate of 226.31. The Giants won the match easily, chasing a target of 150 in just 13 overs.
The match began with World Giant winning the toss and deciding to field first. Asia Lions didn’t have a good powerplay as they lost two wickets in the first five overs. Asghar Afghan was the key performer for the Lions; he continued his excellent form in the tournament and played a superb inning of 41 runs in 26 balls, striking six fours and one six to take the team’s score to 149 runs. Upul Tharanga (22) and Romesh Kaluwitharana (26) were the other two players who looked good but could not convert their score into a half-century. Captain Misbah Ul Haq struggled throughout the innings and just made 18 runs off 21 balls.
It was a complete team effort by the Giants to restrict Lions at 149. Ryan Sidebottom and Morne Morkel took two wickets each for the Giants and were the leading wicket-taker for the side. Brett Lee, Kevin O Brien, and Monty Panesar got one wicket.
This chase looked like a cakewalk for Giants, with Pietersen smashing the ball cruelly. Besides Pietersen’s 86, Kevin O’ Brien played an innings of 31 runs off 24 balls. Brad Haddin smashed a boundary at his first ball to win the match for Giants by seven wickets.
