Pakistan on Saturday lost to England by 93 runs as they crashed out of the Cricket World Cup 2023 in India.
Needing to win by astronomical margins to stand a chance to qualify for the next round based on net run rate, the first blow that Pakistan suffered was to lose the toss. This meant that its bowlers were put into the spotlight early to restrict England to a low score, which its batsmen could then try to assail quickly.
But it seemed as if the bowlers had already checked out of the tournament, with the likes of Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf struggling to make the desired impact.
It wasn't until the 14th over when Iftikhar Ahmed broke the opening partnership of 82 runs between Dawid Malan and Jonny Bairstow.
Bairstow, who scored 59 runs off 61 deliveries, fell to Haris Rauf in the 19th over.
Joe Root and Ben Stokes then put on 132 for the third wicket to ensure Pakistan's bid to restrict England was frustrated. Afridi struck in quick succession for his only two wickets to remove the two most dangerous opponents in Root and Stokes.
Jos Buttler and Harry Brook did enough to ensure they posted a more than competitive total for Pakistan, getting the score to over 300.
While Rauf and Mohammad Wasim then tore into the lower order of English batting, they could not prevent England from scoring 337 runs.
Pakistan then needed to assail the total very rapidly. But everything that could go wrong went wrong with openers Asad Shafique and Fakhar Zaman both sent back to the pavilion before the third over had ended. David Willey gave the Pakistan team a perfect demonstration of what penetrative bowling looks like and what it can accomplish.
Captain Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan attempted to provide some stability and put on 50 runs for the third wicket before Babar was dismissed. By the 28th over, Pakistan had also lost Rizwan and Saud Shakeel for 36 and 29, respectively, leaving Pakistan reeling at 126 for five.
Agha Salman, who was the only Pakistani player to score a half-century or more on Saturday, tried to keep the scoreboard ticking, but he found little support in the likes of Iftikhar Ahmed and Shadab Khan. Eventually, Salman also departed, leaving Pakistan staring at the exit gates with 186-8. There was, however, to be some late drama with Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Wasim and Haris Rauf putting on determined rearguard action that saw them put on another 58 runs before eventually capitulating at 244 all out.
David Willey, playing in his last one-day international, went off on a high by picking up the player of the match award for his three wickets, bringing his career tally to 100.