Pakistan vs. New Zealand: Shaheens Suffer Series Defeat Against Black Caps
by Devesh Jaganath | by Devesh Jaganath
Mitchell Hay Leads New Zealand To ODI Series Win
It was another tough day at the office for Mohammad Rizwan and co, as they saw their chances of making amends for poor recent performances brought to an end by New Zealand at Seddon Park in Hamilton on Wednesday.
Most cricket betting sites had made the Black Caps the clear favourites in the contest, and they did not disappoint in front of their home crowd. Batting first, the Kiwis posted a very defendable target of 292/8, with wicket-keeper batsman Mitchell Hay posting a career-best knock of 99* in just 78 deliveries.
Pakistan’s top five batsmen, Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam, Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha found themselves back in the pavilion for a combined total of 19 runs. Despite a brief fight in the day, the Green Shirts were eventually bundled out for 208 in the 42nd over, 73 runs short of the target.
Pakistan have now won just 1 of their last 10 limited-over matches!
The third ODI in Mount Maunganui on April 5 will now be a dead rubber in terms of the series outcome, but the Shaheens will know that this is a must-win fixture to salvage some pride, and you can check out our cricket predictions for more info ahead of the toss.
Pak-NZ Series Highlights And Takeaways
From a Pakistani perspective, the major positive they will take from this series is the emergence of Sufiyan Muqeem. The left arm chinaman was brought into the side in the final T20 match and picked up two wickets for just six runs in two overs. Unfortunately, the bowlers were defending just 128/9, which the Black Caps chased down in 10 overs.
After being left out of the first ODI, Muqeem has handed just his second 50-over start and was once again the pick of the bowlers, notching 2/33 in 10 overs. Additionally, the 25-year-old also broke an odd record, posting the highest score for a number 12 batter in ODI cricket after coming on as a concussion sub for Haris Rauf (13 runs in 10 balls).
For New Zealand, there were plenty of impressive performances throughout the series, but Mitchell Hay’s knock in just his fourth ODI innings this week was one that created major optimism for the future of the team. While Hay got the Player of the Match performance, Ben Sears' career-best 5/59 in 9.2 overs would have been a very close runner-up.
The only downside for the New Zealanders was the injury sustained by Mark Chapman. The 30-year-old scored a magnificent 132 in just 111 deliveries in the first ODI, but sustained what was later revealed to be a grade-one hamstring tear while fielding in the second innings. Tim Seifert was called up as his replacement for the second and third ODIs.
