The Pakistani boys give van der Dussen a pat on the back. The South African dressing room is standing and clapping as they await his arrival. How about this for a comeback: 55/4 to 273/6? The score on the board should make the hosts happy. After some fireworks from Quinton de Kock and Aiden Markram at the outset, Shaheen Afridi and Mohammad Hasnain triggered a mini-collapse. Pakistan seemed to be on the verge of making further inroads, but Rassie van der Dussen and David Miller dashed their expectations. The pair stitched together a 100-plus relationship and rescued their squad from choppy waters.
With early wickets, it’s a tough situation today, but it’s a proud moment to assist the team under pressure. The wicket was sticky up front, which is typical of a day game, but we knew it would improve over time, and we ended up with a respectable result. I’m sure our bowlers would show up and make it difficult for them. We needed to repair, and on a spongy, two-paced wicket like this, boundaries weren’t coming easily. David bowled a fantastic 50-over innings, which was crucial.