Pakistan’s Over-60s side registered a six-wicket victory over South Africa in their fifth match of the IMC Over-60s World Cup 2026, played on Tuesday at Andrew McCandless Cricket Ground, Toronto. Pakistan skipper Fawad Ijaz Khan won the toss for the third consecutive match and once again chose to field first, a decision that continued to work in Pakistan’s favour. The win leaves Pakistan within touching distance of confirming their place in the Semi-Finals.
Sent in to bat, South Africa found runs hard to come by against a disciplined Pakistan attack. Ross Holing top-scored with 29 off 48 balls, while Peter Marx made 16 without going on to build a bigger score. Tight bowling through the middle overs kept South Africa in check and the innings closed on 133-8 from the full 45 overs. Saghir Abbas and Jaffar Qureshi were the pick of the Pakistan bowlers, with spells of 2-23 and 2-28 respectively. Syed Zafar Ali, Munawar Jafri and Shahid Ahmed also took one wicket each.
Chasing a modest target of 134, Pakistan lost Mazhar Hussain early in the second over, but the innings was steadied by Sajid Ali, who anchored the chase with a patient 38 off 70 balls. Saghir Abbas followed his earlier success with the ball by contributing a valuable 34 off 59, the pair adding a crucial half-century stand to see off any early pressure. Raja Arshad Hayat also chipped in with his 23 runs. Paul du Plessis picked up a couple of wickets for South Africa but could not prevent Pakistan from comfortably closing out the match, with the target reached in 33.2 overs with six wickets kept intact. Saghir Abbas was awarded with the Player of the Match award. Pakistan will play its last group game against Australia on 20th August.
In other matches played on the day, Australia continued their unbeaten run in Pool A with an 82-run win over Canada, while Sri Lanka got the better of Wales by five wickets. In Pool B, West Indies beat Zimbabwe by six wickets, Scotland overcame USA by four wickets and New Zealand edged out England by four runs in a close contest. New Zealand and England have secured their places in the Semi-Finals from Pool B, while Australia has confirmed a Semi-Final berth from Pool A.
