Mohammad Rizwan leads Pakistan to highest winning T20 run chase against South Africa

Babar Azam's visitors defeat Proteas by four wickets in Johannesburg

Pakistan's Hasan Ali, left, and Mohammad Rizwan celebrate after winning the the first T20 against South Africa at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg on Saturday, April 10, 2021. AFP

Pakistan's batsman Mohammad Rizwan, right, score a match-winning fifty against South Africa in the first T20. AP

Pakistan's Hassan Ali, right, celebrates with Mohammad Rizwan after scoring winning runs. AP

South Africa's bowler Beuran Hendricks, middle, celebrates with captain Heinrich Klaasen after dismissing Pakistan's batsman Mohammad Nawaz. AP

Pakistan's Fakhar Zaman leaves the field after being dismissed by South Africa's Tabraiz Shamsi for 27. AP

Shaheen Afridi of Pakistan takes a catch at the Wanderers Stadium. Getty

South Africa's Aiden Markram scored a fifty against Pakistan. AFP

Heinrich Klaasen of South Africa celebrates his fifty. Getty

Mohammad Rizwan steered Pakistan to their highest winning run chase as they defeated South Africa by four wickets in the first T20 at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg on Saturday.

Rizwan made an unbeaten 74 as Pakistan chased down a target of 189 with one ball to spare. Their previous highest T20 chase was 188 against Australia in Harare in 2018.

Rizwan said the pitch was tricky at the start of the chase but he and captain Babar Azam got the side off to a quick start before Azam was out with the total on 41 in the fifth over.

He was then joined by Fakhar Zaman, who scored an astonishing 193 not out in the second ODI on the same ground six days earlier.

Fakhar made 27 off 19 balls before he was caught on the boundary off left-arm spinner Tabraiz Shamsi, who took two for 29.

But Rizwan said he modelled his innings on the way Fakhar played in the one-day game.

"Fakhar's innings was on my mind today, the way he played on this surface," said Rizwan.

"I was taking my time knowing I could score later on."

With a succession of power hitters in the side, Rizwan said he got a message from his team's dug-out that he must keep batting until the end.

Rizwan, who scored only 42 runs in three innings in Pakistan's 2-1 ODI series win, was back in the form which earned him man of the series awards in both Test and T20 series against South Africa in Pakistan earlier in the year.

He hit nine fours and two sixes.

The match swung in the last four overs of the two innings. South Africa could score only 29 in their last four overs, while Pakistan thrashed 52 off the last 3.5 overs.

Proteas captain Heinrich Klaasen rued the poor finish to his side's innings. The slide started when he was caught at short leg off Hasan Ali off the second ball of the 17th over after he had raced to 50 off 28 balls.

"We were 10 to 15 runs short," said Klaasen.