Netherlands handed a major lifeline to Babar Azam's Pakistani side who advanced to the semifinals of T20 World Cup 2022 at South Africa's expense.
The final round of fixtures in Super 12 stage of T20 World Cup 2022 on Sunday proved to be an exciting affair and there was a huge upset on the cards as the Netherlands dumped South Africa out of the World Cup. The only unbeaten team in the tournament until a couple of days ago, the Proteas bowed out, with Pakistan advancing into the semifinals at their expense.
This was made possible after Scott Edwards' Netherlands beat South Africa by 13 runs in Adelaide to dish out a massive upset and send Temba Bavuma's side back home. Babar Azam's Pakistan were also due to play at the venue, and as the Men in Green made their way out onto the pitch Babar thanked Edwards.
The Pak skipper showed a thumbs-up to his opposite number, although it was Edwards who won the internet with his epic response. The Dutch skipper asked the Pakistani captain for a favour instead, and said that 'make sure you win'.
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Pakistan's win ensured that the Netherlands finished in the top four of Group 2, thereby qualifying directly for the next T20 World Cup which will be co-hosted by the United States and West Indies.
A video of the incident was shared by Pakistan's legendary pacer Shoaib Akhtar on his Twitter handle.
"They got us into the semifinals. We ensured their entry into next T20 World Cup," wrote Akhtar in the caption of the viral post.
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Pakistan had earlier faced defeats at the hands of India and Zimbabwe which pushed them to the brink of elimination but they picked up three wins back-to-back and propelled themselves into contention for a semifinals spot, and they will now face off against Group 1 winners New Zealand in the semifinals of World Cup, thanks to a favour from the Dutch.
Meanwhile, India will face off against England in the second semifinal which will take place in Adelaide on November 10.
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 "'Make sure you win..': Babar Azam thanks Scott Edwards, his reply goes viral; watch video")
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