Pakistan in good shape for Champions Trophy after winning ODI series in South Africa

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — Pakistan won a second straight major one-day international series away from home when it beat South Africa by 81 runs at Newlands on Thursday.

After beating Australia 2-1 last month, Pakistan has taken the Proteas 2-0 with a game to spare.

Half-centuries by Babar Azam, captain Mohammad Rizwan and allrounder Kamran Ghulam staked Pakistan to 329 all out.

Heinrich Klaasen hit 97 but South Africa's chase was strangled by Pakistan, and fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi ended the last meaningful resistance with three wickets in three overs. Klaasen was the last man out on 248 in the 44th over.

Pakistan's fifth successive bilateral ODI series win puts it in good stead for the Champions Trophy it will host in February.

It was unchanged from the three-wicket win on Tuesday in Paarl, made to bat first, and minus both openers in the first 10 overs.

Rizwan was smashed on the back of his helmet by debutant pacer Kwena Maphaka but gathered his senses with Babar in a steady but safe stand of 115.

The partnership was broken when Babar was caught at midwicket for 73 off 95 balls, his first half-century in any format for Pakistan since May, and first in ODIs in 13 months.

When Rizwan followed three overs later for 80 off 82, caught and bowled by Maphaka when he was accelerating, Pakistan was forced to reset at 192-4 with 14 overs to go.

Amid four dropped catches by South Africa, Ghulam piled more misery on the host by smashing a 25-ball half-century on his fifth six. Ghulam was the last batter out for 63 off 32, the main plunderer as Pakistan scored 105 runs off the last 10 overs.

“Kamran Ghulam's innings was absolutely fantastic,” Rizwan said. “We were looking for 300 but we got 300-plus, must give credit to him. I had trust in him but not like that ... that was something different.”

Set 330 to win, openers Temba Bavuma and Tony de Zorzi gave South Africa a promising start in the first 12 overs.

But spinners Abrar Ahmed and part-timer Salman Agha chipped out three top-order wickets and slowed the scoring so the run rate required gradually climbed.

Klaasen and the fit-again David Miller were reviving the chase and starting to charge when Miller was caught behind off Shaheen for 29, ending a stand of 72 runs in 12 overs with Klaasen.

Klaasen soldiered on, out three runs short of a fifth ODI century, as Shaheen grabbed 4-47 and fellow pacer Naseem Shah took 3-37.

The last ODI is on Sunday in Johannesburg.

AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket

South African wicketkeeper Heinrich Klaasen, left, watches as Pakistans Babar Aam plays a shot during the second ODI International cricket match between South Africa and Pakistan in Cape Town, South Africa, Thursday, Dec. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Halden Krog)

South African wicketkeeper Heinrich Klaasen, left, watches as Pakistans Muhammad Rizwan plays a shot during the second ODI International cricket match between South Africa and Pakistan in Cape Town, South Africa, Thursday, Dec. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Halden Krog)

Pakistan batsman Kamran Ghulam smashes the ball towards the boundary during the second ODI International cricket match between South Africa and Pakistan in Cape Town, South Africa, Thursday, Dec. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Halden Krog)

Pakistan fast bowler Shaheen Afridi celebrates the wicket of South Africa's Marco Jansen during the second ODI International cricket match between South Africa and Pakistan in Cape Town, South Africa, Thursday, Dec. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Halden Krog)

Pakistan bowler Shaheen Afridi celebrates while South Africa's Marco Jansen stares at his fallen wickets during the second ODI International cricket match between South Africa and Pakistan in Cape Town, South Africa, Thursday, Dec. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Halden Krog)

ROME (AP) — A court in Sicily is expected to announce its verdict Friday on whether Italy's vice premier, Matteo Salvini, was guilty of illegally detaining 100 migrants aboard a humanitarian rescue ship when he was interior minister.

Salvini faces up to six years in jail if convicted on charges of kidnapping for the 2019 incident when he refused to allow the migrants to leave the Open Arms rescue ship at Italy’s southernmost island of Lampedusa.

A sentence of over five years would also automatically bar him from office. However, verdicts in Italy are only considered final once all appeals are exhausted, a process that can take years. Salvini has made clear he will not step down.

Now transport minister in Premier Giorgia Meloni's far-right-led government, Salvini has defended himself, saying he acted to protect Italy's borders.

“I have kept my promises, combating mass immigration and reducing departures, landings and deaths at sea,” Salvini said on Friday as he arrived in court.

“Whatever the sentence, today is a good day for me because I am proud to have defended my country. I would do everything I did again," he added.

During the standoff, some of the migrants threw themselves overboard in desperation as the captain pleaded for a safe, close port. The remaining 89 people onboard were eventually allowed to disembark in Lampedusa by a court order.

Salvini took a hard line against migration as interior minister from 2018-2019 in the first government of former Premier Giuseppe Conte. He refused humanitarian rescue ships port and accused the groups that rescued migrants at sea of effectively encouraging smugglers.

Salvini has the support of Meloni, other government ministers and anti-migrant European lawmakers, as well as Elon Musk, who expressed his support in a message on the social media platform X.

Since she took power in 2022, Meloni has moved to crack down on migration, striking deals with northern African nations to prevent departures while also setting up centers in Albania aimed at vetting migrants rescued at sea in the non-EU country without allowing them to enter Italy. Those centers are not yet operational amid legal challenges.

Italy's deputy premier, Matteo Salvini, arrives at the Palermo's court Friday Dec. 20, 2024 as he awaits a verdict for preventing some 100 migrants from disembarking a rescue boat in 2019 when he was interior minister. (AP Photo/Salvatore Cavalli)

Italy's deputy premier, Matteo Salvini, arrives at the Palermo's court Friday Dec. 20, 2024 as he awaits a verdict for preventing some 100 migrants from disembarking a rescue boat in 2019 when he was interior minister. (AP Photo/Salvatore Cavalli)

Italy’s vice premier, Matteo Salvini arrives at a court in Sicily that is expected to announce its verdict on whether Salvini is guilty of illegally detaining 100 migrants aboard a humanitarian rescue ship when he was interior minister, in Palermo, Italy, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (Alberto Lo Bianco/LaPresse via AP)

FILE - A man who threw himself in the water from the Open Arms vessel, is intercepted by the Italian Coast guards as he tried to swim to the island of Lampedusa, southern Italy, Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2019. (AP Photo/Francisco Gentico, File)

Former Interior minister Matteo Salvini leaves the Senate prior to a vote on lifting his immunity for a trial on Aug 2019 Open Arms case, in Rome Thursday, July 30, 2020. (Mauro Scrobogna/LaPresse via AP, File)