Pakistan on Wednesday became the first team to reach the final of the ongoing T20 World Cup in Australia after completing a lopsided seven-wicket victory over New Zealand in Sydney. Babar Azam and his boys were brilliant in all departments of the game throughout the match and went on to chase New Zealand's sub-par total of 152/4 with relative ease, eventually winning the contest with five balls to spare. Earlier, New Zealand captain Kane Williamson won the toss and chose to bat first. However, the New Zealand batters never got going as the Pakistan bowlers led by Shaheen Afridi didn't give them enough room to exploit the batting-friendly conditions at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

Shaheen Afridi was exceptional in the first power play as he sent opener Finn Allen packing in the opening over of the match. The left-arm seamer then gave Pakistan the big wicket of Kane Williamson when the Kiwi skipper was looking threatening in the middle. Afridi ended the New Zealand innings with splendid figures of 2/24.

While Mohammad Nawaz was the only one to take a wicket, the remaining Pakistan bowlers bowled a tight line and length, not allowing the New Zealand batters to free their arms. The strategy paid off for Pakistan as Kane Williamson and his colleagues could only put 152 on the board.

Needing 153 to seal their spot in the final, Pakistan's openers Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan came out all guns blazing as they put together a century stand in only 12.4 overs.

Though Pakistan lost Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan for scores of 53 and 57 after their 105-run partnership, the Green Army's win became a mere formality from there on. After Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan left the field, Mohammad Haris contributed with a brisk 30 before Shan Masood sealed a comprehensive win for Pakistan.

The Men in Green's triumph was also noticed on social media with several netizens posting hilarious memes to mock Pakistan's critics who were not expecting their win.

https://twitter.com/AwaisFareed91/status/1590311416481079299

“Obviously, me and Babar decided to go after the new ball and the pitch was difficult. When we finished powerplay, the discussion was one of the guys to go deep. The guys have worked hard and we have always believed,” an ecstatic Mohammad Rizwan said while picking up his Man of the Match award.

Pakistan skipper Babar Azam was all praise for his team's all-round effort, declaring that everyone – from his fast bowlers to spinners, to fielders to batters, everyone was simply outstanding in the field and that's why they are in the final of a T20 World Cup.

“The way the team performed in the last three matches. Thanks to the crowd, feels like we are playing at home. We had a good start in the first six overs and later on we had a good spin attack. The fast bowlers also finished very well. Our plan before going inside was to utilise the first six overs and later on everyone can come and chip in. I think he [Haris] is a young guy and showing his aggression. We will enjoy this moment, but at the same time we will focus on the final,” Babar Azam told the tournament's host broadcaster after Pakistan's win.

Meanwhile, Pakistan's batting mentor credited the bowlers for restricting New Zealand to a below-par total before lauding Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan for their half-centuries with the bat.

“Fantastic. Tonight was very special and a few things came out for us. Everyone will talk about Babar and Rizwan, but that bowling attack did an unbelievable job. Sky is the limit and both of these guys have done it for Pakistan for a number of years and I also want to mention Haris as well. He faces every fast bowler in the nets and smashes them.  On this surface, the bowlers had to adapt and we got Shaheen back up and running. Once it starts to reverse-swing, boy! he's hard to handle. Haris can bowl 150kph. I'd like to face India, pretty much because of the spectacle. It's unthinkable,” Matthew Hayden said after the match.

On the other hand, New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson called the defeat a “tough pill to swallow”.

“I thought Pakistan played nicely and then we managed to wrestle back some momentum. At the halfway mark we thought we had a competitive total but disappointing not to make Pakistan work harder [in the chase]. It's a tough pill to swallow. Fielding was okay…but I think if we want to be honest, we wanted to be more disciplined with our areas. Like I said, Pakistan deserved to win. Throughout the round-robin stages, we played nicely and today we weren't at our best. Having said that, we know the fickle nature of T20 cricket,” a dejected Kane Williamson said in the post-match presentation ceremony.