Hong Kong Sixes: Pakistan win historic 6th title, beat Kuwait in the final emphatically by 43 runs
Pakistan had a near-spotless campaign on the way to win their historic sixth Hong Kong Sixes title, the most by any team, after beating a spirited Kuwaiti outfit in the final, rather comprehensively. Pakistan only lost to India on DLS method in a rain-affected clash in the title-winning run.
Pakistan won the short and sharp competition Hong Kong Sixes, after beating a spirited Kuwaiti side in the final at the Mission Road Ground on Sunday, November 9. Apart from a defeat to India on DLS method in the group stage by just a couple of runs, Pakistan had a near-spotless campaign on the way to their sixth title in the exhibition tournament, the most by any side in the competition's history. Kuwait, who almost stole it away from Pakistan in both teams' opening Group C clash, gave tough competition to Abbas Afridi-led side in the final as well, but 135 was too much to chase in the end for Yasin Patel and Co.
Most Hong Kong Sixes titles
6 - Pakistan (1992, 1997, 2001, 2002, 2011, 2025)
5 - England (1993, 1994, 2003, 2004, 2008)
5 - South Africa (1995, 2006, 2009, 2012, 2017)
Pakistan got off to a terrific start, with both abdul Samad and Khawaja Nafay beginning in their usual 'going after every ball' style. Meet Bhavsar broke the partnership in the second over, only to bring more destruction for Kuwait as Abbas Afridi, who was eventually named the Player of the Match and Player of the Series, arrived and destroyed the young Asian side.
Afridi smashed an unbeaten 52 off just 11 balls as despite Bhavsar's twin strikes in his second over, Pakistan ended up posting a massive score of 135 runs on the board. Afridi and Muhammad Shahzad added 28 runs in the final over to get to an above-par score as Kuwait needed to bat out of their skins to chase that down.
To their credit, Kuwait began well with Adnan Idrees despite being not allowed a no-ball accumulated 32 runs off the first over. However, the left-arm spinner Maaz Sadaqat broke the game open with three wickets in his two overs, leaving a lot for Kuwaiti batters to do in the end and they ended up falling short by 43 runs.
Pakistan beat South Africa and Australia in the quarter-final and semi-final before setting up the summit clash against Kuwait on the way to their sixth title. Abbas Afridi and Abdul Samad made real contributions and even though this tournament may not matter much, but with consistent performances, the duo surely would have attracted some attention from the national selectors.