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TAUNTON, England: Pakistan's first match since a betting scandal engulfed the team on their tour of England ended with them having just 11 fit players at their disposal on Thursday.
Pakistan won a one-day tour game against southwest county Somerset by eight runs in the last over in their final match before Twenty20 and one-day series against England.
But the fixture was overshadowed by the announcement that Test captain Salman Butt and pace bowlers Mohammad Aamer and Mohammad Asif had been left out for the remainder of the tour after being named in a fixing 'sting'.
Britain's News of the World newspaper alleged on Sunday that the trio had all conspired with a 'fixer' to deliberately bowl no-balls during the fourth Test against England at Lord's last week.
Pakistan's Umar Akmal was hit in the face batting in the nets at Somerset's County Ground before play started on Thursday and missed the match entirely, while all-rounder Abdul Razzaq suffered a back problem warming-up between innings and was unable to bowl.
Razzaq's condition was being assessed, but Pakistan team manager Yawar Saeed, speaking before play started, said he expected Umar Akmal to be fit for the remainder of the tour.
Saeed added replacements would be called up to get the squad back to its original 16-man size but said the issue of replacement players was a matter for the selectors.
Butt, Asif and Aamer all pulled out from the tour after a meeting with Pakistan's High Commissioner (ambassador) Wajid Shamsul Hasan and Ijaz Butt, chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board, in London on Thursday.
"If they do something bad, you need to give them a punishment, but we are still waiting for the result and I'm praying that what happens is good for the team," said Pakistan one-day captain Shahid Afridi at the toss.
Afridi, speaking after stumps, said: "It was a good pressure game and my boys are really focused to play some good cricket here."
Pakistan made 264 all out after losing the toss with Shazaib Hasan making 105 and Fawad Alam 97.
Somerset medium-pace bowler Lewis Gregory took four wickets for 49 runs on his debut.
The hosts finished on 256 for nine with South African Zander de Bruyn 122 not out.
Pakistan off-spinner Saeed Ajmal took three for 40 and paceman Umar Gul three for 66.
"It was such a quality game of cricket, under the circumstances," Somerset captain Peter Trego told reporters, adding he supported the withdrawal of Aamer, Asif and Butt from the England series.
"The shame is that it's three exceptionally good players - and might possibly detract from the quality of the series.
"But with the issues looming, it's probably best they're out of the limelight for now."
The match passed of without incident and a collection amongst the crowd of 4,000, who acknowledged all the tourists' good play with polite applause, raised 2,580 pounds (3,971 dollars) for the Pakistan flood-relief fund.
Somerset chief executive Richard Gould told reporters the club would round that figure up to 5,000 pounds (7,696 dollars).
It was announced by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) that Pakistan had cancelled a schedule training session in Cardiff on Friday.
Pakistan play the first of two Twenty20 internationals against England, both in Cardiff, on Sunday.
The teams then contest a five-match one-day series starting at the Riverside, the home ground of northeast county Durham, on September 10.
- AFP/de
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