Saim Ayub Joins Virat Kohli in Elite Club with Match-Winning Century as Pakistan Whitewashes South Africa

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Saim Ayub was on fire for Pakistan on Sunday, scoring a brilliant century in their third ODI against South Africa in Johannesburg. Chasing a target of 309 runs, the Pakistani bowlers restricted the home team to 271 runs in just 42 overs during the 47-over match. Sufiyan Muqeem was the standout bowler, taking four wickets, while Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah each grabbed two.

In their first innings, Pakistan set a solid total of 308/9 in 47 overs, thanks to Ayub’s impressive 101 runs off 94 balls, which included 13 fours and two sixes.

Saim Ayub makes it onto an exclusive list

Ayub just scored his second century of the series, making him part of an exclusive group of visiting batsmen who have hit multiple hundreds in ODI series in South Africa. This group includes big names like David Warner, Fakhar Zaman, and Joe Root, all of whom have two tons there. On the other hand, Kevin Pietersen and Virat Kohli have managed to rack up three tons in just seven and six matches, respectively.

With this win, Pakistan has made history by becoming the first team to achieve a clean sweep against the Proteas in an ODI series on their home turf. After the match, Ayub, who was named Player of the Match and Player of the Series, shared, “It feels really special because we won. This award belongs to the team. Everyone contributed. As a young player, I aim to learn from every game and every mistake. The seniors are great at helping me grow.”

Pakistan's captain, Mohammad Rizwan, added, “It’s always a proud moment. The nation expects us to perform like this. We’re really happy. The whole team put in the effort. In the second ODI, everyone stepped up. It was a perfect team effort. Playing away from home isn’t easy, but the guys had faith in each other. As for Saim Ayub, I don’t want to overpraise him, but we trust him and believe in his abilities.”

The visitors kicked off the series with a three-wicket win, followed by an 81-run victory, and then wrapped it up with a 36-run win using the DLS method to complete the clean sweep.

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