Afridi's five seals Pakistan victory
Where Ireland went, Canada could not follow as their dreams of a World Cup fairytale were blown away by Shahid Afridi
Where Ireland went, Canada could not follow as their dreams of a World Cup fairytale were blown away by Shahid Afridi
Scorer: Venkat Raghav | Commentator: Sriram Veera
Canada flirted with fame but it wasn't to be their night. No one could take ownership of the chase. Hansra seemed the man but he was thwarted by Shahid Afridi, who stamped his presence on the game with a fab spell.
YOunis Khan: "They bowled and played well. But we knew that if we bowl well in the first Powerplay, we can do it. Shahid was very good. The wicket was slow and the ball was not coming on very well. I think 180 is enough against Canada. Afridi has taken wickets whenever we needed him to do it. He is doing fantastically at the moment."
Please hang on for quotes from the post-match ceremony
Bagai: "Very very disappointing loss for us. We did a great job after losing one of our better bowlers. Our batting worries continue. We disappointed themselves. Fighting is one thing but taking it over the line is another level. We fell short. Just not this one, our batting has been a worry in the last few weeks. We might get a new faces in for the other games. It was great to get some support from the crowd."
Afridi: "Batting first was a good decision but the shot selections weren't good. It;s a good wake-up call for us. Coach Waqar Younis and I will speak to the team. It wasn't good shot selection. We won't repeat this kind of performance again. These are perfect conditions for bowling, for spin and fast bowlers. Asked about his bowling, he simply says "Alhamdullilah"
That's it from us. Shab Bakhair. Good bye and good luck.
H Osinde b Wahab Riaz 0 (5m 3b 0x4 0x6) SR: 0
Jay: "Was NOT Blewett if you're thinking of Test matches, Afridi cleaned up Steve Waugh with a scud missile on his Test debut (not sure about debut, but it was in a Test)" So, perhaps, he took both of them with those missiles.
Batting Powerplay taken
Ashish Bagai, the Canada captain, was "boggled" by some of the decisions made by the DRS (Decision Review System) in his side's tense 43-run loss to Pakistan at the Premadasa on Thursday
ESPNcricinfo presents the Plays of the Day from the match between Pakistan and Canada
Taking the batting Powerplay with tailenders at the wicket; plans to bowl maidens when defending 184; five outside the circle when an Associate nation is eight down - surely Pakistan are being too cautious
Join ESPNcricinfo's ball-by-ball commentators for a live discussion on today's game