04 May,2009 08:18 AM IST | | AFP
Kamran Akmal hit an aggressive century to overshadow Shane Watson's hundred as Pakistan beat Australia by seven wickets in the fifth and final match at Sheikh Zayed Stadium yesterday.
The 27-year-old wicket-keeper batsman struck an unbeaten 116 and added a Pakistan record of 198 for the fourth wicket with Misbah-ul-Haq (76 not out) to help his team chase a challenging 251-run target with three overs to spare.
Watson's 116 not-out was the cornerstone for Australia's 250-4 in 50 overs.
Pakistan captain Younus praised his batsmen as his side showed improvement from previous displays.
"I just asked them to rotate the strike, it was nice that our batsmen showed commitment this time," said Younus.
"It's nice to end the series on a high note although we wanted to win the series."
Australian captain Michael Clarke said he thought a 251-target would be enough. "We did not bowl well," he said. "Going by totals in the previous matches we thought we had put a good total but they batted very well."
Earlier, Watson hit his second one-day hundred to steer Australia to a competitive total the highest in this series from both sides.
Watson set the platform for the big total, putting stands of 58 for the first wicket with Brad Haddin (36) and another 57 for the third with Clarke (26).
