PAK vs NED, World Cup 2023: Babar Azam dismissed for 5 off 18 in his first official outing on Indian soill

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PAK vs NED, World Cup 2023: Pakistan captain Babar Azam was dismissed for 5 off 18 in his first official outing on Indian soil. The star batter never looked at ease and was dismissed by Netherlands off-spinner Colin Ackermann in ninth over at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Friday, October 6.

Pakistan were asked to bat first by Netherlands in their first match of the World Cup 2023. The Dutch bowlers applied some early pressure and kept the Pakistan openers Fakhar Zaman and Imam-ul-Haq quiet for a while.

Logan Van Beek got rid of Fakhar Zaman (12) in the fourth over and created further pressure on Pakistan. Babar Azam walked into bat three but looked uneasy all the while.

Just when Harsha Bhogle and his colleagues in the commentary panel were talking about Babar Azam's weakness against off-spinners, Ackermann dismissed the number one ranked ODI batter on the third ball of the ninth over. The soft dismissal saw Babar Azam tamely giving an easy catch to the fielder at short mid-wicket.

Netherlands players erupted into a big celebration as Babar Azam stood shocked after getting out. To add salt to Pakistan's wound, right-arm pacer Paul van Meekeren dismissed Imam-ul-Haq on the first ball of the tenth over. The wicket reduced the Men in Green to 38/3 in 9.1 overs.

A fourth wicket was there on offer on the final ball of the 11th over, but Vikramjit Singh, standing at slip, dropped a Saud Shakeel catch off spinner Aryan Dutt.

Notably, Pakistan scored 345/5 in the first warm-up match against New Zealand. In the second warm-up game, they were bundled out for 337 while chasing 352 against Australia. Babar Azam scored 80 in the first match and retired out 90 in the second.