Agency :Legspinner Yasir Shah took 6 for 26 as Pakistan thumped Zimbabwe by 131 runs in the first one-day international on Thursday.Shah ran through Zimbabwe’s top and middle order, taking five of the first seven wickets as the home team crumbled to 128 all out chasing Pakistan’s 259 for 6 at Harare Sports Club.Put in to bat first by Zimbabwe, Pakistan struggled at the start and were 35 for 3 before their middle order came to the rescue.Sarfraz Ahmed hit 44, Shoaib Malik made 31, and then Mohammad Rizwan and Imad Wasim both got half-centuries in a 124-run partnership for the sixth wicket.Rizwan was top scorer with a career-best 75 in ODIs, hitting four fours and two sixes. Wasim made 61 and their stand ensured Pakistan went past 250.Zimbabwe never came close and were bowled out in just 37 overs as Shah produced the second-best bowling performance by a Pakistan spinner in an ODI behind Shahid Afridi’s 7 for 12 against West Indies in 2013.Sean Williams’ 26 from 31 balls was the best score from the Zimbabwean batting.Pakistan lead the three-game ODI series and also won both Twenty20 games.
