NEW DELHI: Pakistan star pacer Haris Rauf claimed a maiden five-wicket haul to hand Pakistan a resounding 142-run victory over Afghanistan in the opening ODI at Mahinda Rajapaksa International Stadium in Hambantota on Tuesday.
With this win, Pakistan took 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
Rauf was at his lethal best in the opening ODI. His dismissal of Rashid Khan, among his five wickets, left everyone, including the Afghanistan batsman, stunned.
In a masterful display, Rauf delivered a length ball, strategically pitching it around the off stump. Rashid found himself unable to gauge the pace, and in the blink of an eye, Rauf's sheer speed sent the stumps flying, leaving everyone awestruck by the spectacle.
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Apart from Rashid, Rauf dismissed Rahmanullah Gurbaz (18), Ikram Alikhil (4), Mohammad Nabi (7) and Mujeeb Ur Rahman (4).
Rauf was awarded Man of the Match for his spectacular figures of 6.2-2-18-5.
"Feeling well, especially tried to use the conditions and make the most of it. It's a low-scoring game but as a bowling unit we had belief and the wicket demanded hard length bowling and that's how I picked my wickets. He (Shaheen) started really well and it gave me confidence before I came to bowling. When I'm bowling the focus is not on the speed and I just try to land it where I want it to land," Raud said after the match.
The second ODI will be played on Thursday at the same venue.
