Shoaib Akhtar compliments Marcus Stoinis: The former Pakistani speedster expressed approval of the Australian all-rounder.
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All-rounder Marcus Stoinis has provided a shot in the arm to Australia’s ICC T20 World Cup 2022 campaign via a match-winning half-century against Sri Lanka in the seventh Super 12 match at the Optus Stadium tonight.
Chasing a 158-run target, defending champions Australia had failed to gain any advantage in the powerplay on the back of scoring 33/1 under fielding restrictions.
While the run-chase was first given some acceleration by all-rounder Glenn Maxwell (23), it was Stoinis’ power-packed knock which propelled them to not just a victory but a significant improvement in their NRR (Net Run Rate) as well.
Stoinis, who scored 59* (18) with the help of four fours and six sixes at a strike rate of 327.77, registered a second T20I half-century to win a maiden Player of the Match award in his 49th match.
Shoaib Akhtar compliments Marcus Stoinis for scoring fastest 50 in T20 international among Australian batters
Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar took to social media platform Twitter to express approval of Stoinis’ innings. Returning from an injury in the tournament, Stoinis winning a match on his own is an ideal-case scenario for this Australian middle-order.
Coming in to bat at No. 5 in the 13th over, Stoinis dominated in a 25-ball 69-run fourth-wicket partnership finishing the match with 21 deliveries to go.
The same was possible on the back of a brutal display of batting in Perth. Having hit a boundary on the third delivery that he faced, Stoinis hit two more fours in the following Dasun Shanaka over. Taking on the attack against the Sri Lankan spinners, the right-handed batter smashed a four and as many as five sixes in the next two Wanindu Hasaranga and Maheesh Theekshana overs.
Having scored the second-fastest half-century (17 balls) in a T20 World Cup, the 33-year old player also managed to register the fastest T20I half-century among Australian batters.
