MONG KOK – Pakistan outclassed Kuwait by 44 runs to lift the Hong Kong Sixes 2025 trophy at the Mission Road Ground.
It was pure dominance from start to finish as Abdul Samad and Abbas Afridi ignited fans with explosive batting, while Maaz Sadaqat sealed the deal with a masterclass in death bowling.
Batting first, Men in Green exploded out of the gates. Opener Abdul Samad wasted no time, launching Yasin Patel’s second ball for a towering six. Patel completely lost his rhythm, conceding three wides under pressure. His partner Khawaja Nafay joined the fireworks with a six off his first ball, powering Pakistan to a blistering 26 runs in the opening over.
Kuwait found a breakthrough in the next over when Meet Bhavsar dismissed Nafay for a rapid 22 off six balls (two fours and two sixes), leaving Pakistan at 33-1 after just 1.4 overs.
Then walked in skipper Abbas Afridi, and the show only got bigger. Afridi announced his arrival with back-to-back sixes, propelling Pakistan to 45-1 in no time. Samad continued his rampage, adding a boundary and a six in the next over to bring up 50 in 2.2 overs.
By the end of four overs, Pakistan had smashed their way to 95-1, with Samad hammering three consecutive sixes and Afridi anchoring from the other end. Kuwait struck again when Bhavsar got Samad for a thunderous 42 off 13 balls (two fours and five sixes), and Shahid Aziz departed without scoring, making it 95-3 in 4.3 overs.
At that point, Maaz Sadaqat joined his captain, keeping the runs flowing as Pakistan crossed the 100-run mark. Then came the fireworks Pakistan fans will never forget — Afridi went berserk in the final over, smashing 52 runs from just 11 balls, including two fours and seven towering sixes. Pakistan ended with a monstrous 136 runs, setting Kuwait a mountain to climb.
Kuwait began their chase in stunning fashion. Adnan Idrees punished Shahid Aziz, blasting two sixes in the first over, which leaked 32 runs, leaving Pakistan momentarily rattled. But the momentum shifted immediately in the next over. Mohammad Shahzad removed the dangerous Idrees for 30 off eight balls (five sixes), reducing Kuwait to 33-1 after 1.3 overs.
Bilal Tahir struck a six but couldn’t last long, while Meet Bhavsar tried to steady the innings with a string of boundaries. Just as Kuwait looked to rebuild, Maaz Sadaqat stepped up with an extraordinary spell — claiming three quick wickets, including Mohamed Shafeeq LBW off the first ball of his third over, coming close to a hat-trick.
Bhavsar kept fighting with timely hits, but Sadaqat’s control restricted him to 18 runs in the over, leaving Kuwait needing an impossible 44 runs off the final over. Abdul Samad, who had set the tone with the bat, returned to finish the job — cleaning up the Kuwait lineup in the sixth over to bowl them out for 92 runs.
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