Naseem Shah

On an evening when it really mattered, the 19-year old soaked in the pressure and won it for his team - this time, with the bat.

There was the loss of his mother on the eve of his debut, when the 16-year old Naseem was on the other side of the world in Australia. The ball still teases long-off, but by the time the man puts in a despairing dive, Afghanistan's fate is sealed. For Naseem might be a boy wizard with ball in hand, but wielding the blade, he's a regular old Muggle. There was a multiple stress fracture of his back that saw him in the hospital more frequently than on the field. This one isn't as clean, and for the briefest fraction in time, the ball hovers in the air within reach of long-off, India, Pakistan and Afghanistan's fates hanging on the path it takes on its descent. An hour earlier, he had dismissed Babar Azam, probably the best batter in the world, for a golden duck. The boy was willing to take that chance, and the pain of almost certain failure was just the price he might have to pay. Fazalhaq Farooqi (3-31), Mujeeb Ur Rehman (4-0-12-0), Fareed Ahmed (3-31), Rashid Khan (2-25) and Mohammad Nabi (3-0-22-0) take the attack on, landing blow after blow until a punch-drunk Pakistan just about sink to their knees. Significant Indian interest in the game too, lending it an extra edge - a Pakistan win would put the giants of this continent out of the tournament. The route to the Pakistan national set-up sometimes feels less a pathway and more a maze, but the generational nature of Naseem's raw pace and brimming potential was blindingly obvious. Pakistan keep Afghanistan's batters in check, the 129 they manage the There's no let-up in pace, and yet, the moment the ball leaves his hand, his body remembers what it's being put through, and the pain overcomes him once more.