Babar tried his best. But his best was never going to be enough. Amid the whirlwind of sixes from the bat of Daryl Mitchell, Pakistan were blown away in the first T20 at Eden Park, Auckland. The host looked to bounce back after a disappointing performance against Bangladesh in the last series. On the other hand, Pakistan showed plenty of resilience but to no avail against Australia in the Test series. However, it was a day of rejoice for the Kiwis who started their preparations for the 2024 T20 World Cup in the right manner.
Team Lineups
Apart from the Asian Games 2023, the last time Pakistan national played a T20 game was back in April, 2023. Only 6 players who played in that game were selected to take part on this occasion as well. The major change in the Pakistani batting lineup was the promotion of young Saim Ayub up the order. Babar was restored to his initial batting position of no.4 in this game. 22 year old pacer from Peshawar, Abbas Afridi was making his debut for his country. Aamer Jamal also made his first appearance on the back of a strong showing on the tour of Australia. Azam Khan was selected as the man to keep wickets. Haris Rauf was reinstated in the team after his refusal to play test matches in Australia. Shaheen Afridi would lead his country for the first time as a full-time captain.
New Zealand made three changes to the team that played in the 3rd T20 against Bangladesh last month. Kane Wiliamson is back for the first time in a year. Mark Chapman and Matt Henry also got their places back. Mitchell Santner missed out due to an injury. Tim Seifert and Jimmy Neesham were omitted from the last team.
New Zealand
- Finn Allen 2. Devon Conway (WK) 3. Kane Williamson (Cap.) 4. Daryl Mitchell 5. Glenn Phillps 6. Mark Chapman 7. Adam Milne 8. Ish Sodhi 9. Matt Henry 10. Tim Southee 11. Ben Sears
Pakistan
- Saim Ayub 2. Muhammad Rizwan 3. Babar Azam 4. Fakhar Zaman 5. Iftikhar Ahmed 6. Azam Khan (WK) 7. Shaheen Afridi (Cap.) 8. Aamer Jamal 9. Usama Mir 10. Abbas Afridi 11. Haris Rauf
Pakistan captain Shaheen Afridi won the toss and elected to bowl first. The pitch in Auckland looked a good one for batting with an average first innings score of over 160+. The short boundaries make the task difficult for the bowlers who need to show a lot of variations and adaptability to contain the batsmen.
Fixture
New Zealand and Pakistan have faced off on 34 occasions in the T20 format. Out of these 34 games, New Zealand has the upper hand with 20 victories. On the other hand, Pakistan have secured 14 wins against the Kiwis. On New Zealand soil it is a much tighter contest. New Zealand have won on eight occasions to Pakistan’s 7. This is the first time these two are meeting in this format since April 2023. It was the last match of their bilateral T20 series. New Zealand won that match by a six wicket margin to draw the thrilling series at 2-2. During the 2023 Cricket World Cup, Pakistan recorded a stunning victory against New Zealand thanks to a memorable knock from Fakhar Zaman.
| Venue | The first T20 international between Pakistan and New Zealand took place at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand. |
| Date | The game started at 11:40 IST on Friday, November 12. |
Captaincy & Tactics
New Zealand played their shots all over the ground during the first stage of their innings. Daryl Mitchell played fantastically over the heads of the bowlers. His straight drive was a genius ploy to make the best use of short boundaries. Kane Williamson started off slow but then changed gear during the later stages of his innings. The Pakistani bowlers kept dropping in short, and they were punished accordingly. The fielding department was also in no mood to help out the struggling bowlers.
Pakistan started off in a bright manner, with Saim Ayub making the most of square boundaries. Muhammad Rizwan was also positive from the start. Babar Azam joined the crease and he was keeping Pakistan on par with the required run rate. However, a flurry of wickets put Pakistan on the backfoot. The Kiwi bowlers were mixing it up in terms of line and length. They also employed slower deliveries to good effect. Tim Southee was fantastic by deploying all the weapons in his arsenal.
Batting Analysis
Devon Conway got himself dismissed on the second delivery of the first over. However, Finn Allen was there to make amends. Allen hit 24 runs in the second over Shaheen Shah Afridi. Pakistan made the mistake of bowling straight and full to Daryl Mitchell. The 33 year old right hander was finding the boundaries more often than not with exquisite shots over the head of the bowler. The straight boundaries were less than 55 meters at Eden Park and Mitchell made the most out of this length.
There were cameos from Chapman, Milne and Phillps that took the total over 210. Chapman was especially explosive, with 26 runs scored from 11 balls. Phillps also got 19 runs from 11 deliveries.
Saim Ayub blasted the first ball of the innings through the cover region. The shot of the match also came from the 21 year old sensation. He punted a no-look pull shot over fine leg. He was run out unfortunately, but Rizwan and then Babar continued to score quick runs. Babar Azam was trying to hit through the line, but was missing the timing continuously. However he posted the only fifty of the Pakistani innings off 37 balls, keeping their dreams alive. But Babar could not find his ideal partner and Pakistan ran out of steam within 18 overs.
Bowling Analysis
Tim Southee is the first bowler to reach the 150 wicket mark in the T20I format. The 35 year old veteran played his first T20 match back in 2008. He has been excellent throughout his career. He got 4 scalps for only 25 runs in this match. Adam Milne and Ben Sears got two wickets each, but they were expensive in their 4 overs.
Shaheen Afridi bowled a memorable first over in his captaincy debut. He dismissed Devon Conway on the second ball and Kane Williamson played 4 consecutive dot deliveries. The towering left arm pacer gave away 46 runs in his last 3 overs. Haris Rauf bowled well and got 2 wickets for 34 runs. Aamer Jamal had a wonderful first tour of Australia, showing his prowess with the ball and bat. But he had a T20 debut to forget as he conceded 55 runs from 4 overs.
It was a contrasting story for Abbas Afridi however, the 22 year old right arm pacer claimed three scalps including the valuable wicket of Kane Williamson. Usama Mir has been finding the international stage a little too difficult since his debut. The wrist spinner cost 51 runs in 4 overs. It was a tough pitch to bowl on with short boundaries. Bowlers who were mixing their pace up got rewards for their varieties.
Fielding Analysis
The fielding performance by Pakistan was reminiscent of their recent struggle in this format. Babar Azam was culpable for putting down Kane Willimson early in his innings. Kane Williamson tried to heave the delivery from Abbas Afridi over long on. But it flew to Babar who put down a regulation grab. Williamson got another life five overs later. This time it was off Usama Mir. Iftikhar Ahmed at short third dropped him after juggling twice. Youngster Saim Ayub was magnificent in the outfield though, finishing the innings with three grabs to his name.
Kane Williamson dropped an easy catch of Saim Ayub on the first over of the second innings. Matt Henry dropped a sharp chance to dismiss Muhammad Rizwan. Ish Sodhi’s instinctive return catch of Fakhar Zaman was the best piece of fielding on a rather errant day for the fielders. The rest of the catches were safely grabbed by the Kiwis on their way to victory. Adam Milne showed presence of my mind to run Saim Ayub out off his own bowling.
Key Performances
The New Zealand opener Finn Allen got his side playing during the powerplay with a blistering innings of 34 from 15 deliveries. The right hander hit 6 boundaries in his innings. New Zealand captain Kane Williamson made a memorable comeback by posting a score of 57 runs from 45 balls. Daryl Mitchell was the chief architect of destruction though, with 61 runs from 27 balls. The 31 year old hit an equal share of 4 fours and 4 sixes in his innings. A couple of useful cameos from Glenn Phillps and Mark Chapman elevated the score past 200. It was a debut to remember for the 22 year old pacer Abbas Afridi, who bagged three scalps for 34 runs. The Pakistani skipper Shaheen Afridi claimed three wickets for 46 runs. Haris Rauf bowled well and ended the innings with 2 for 34.
The Pakistan innings started off in a flamboyant fashion as Saim Ayub took the early initiative. Ayub hit 2 fours and 3 sixes in his cameo of 8 balls that yielded 27 runs. Muhammad Rizwan looked good for his innings of 25 from 14 balls. Iftikhar hit 2 sixes but was sent to the paviliom after scoring 24 from 17 balls. The top scorer of the second innings was Babar Azam. The right hander was the lone warrior for Pakistan with 57 runs from 35 balls courtesy of six fours and two sixes. Tim Southee was the pick of Blackcaps with 4 wickets for 25 runs. Adam Mline and Ben Sears both claimed two wickets apiece as New Zealand bowled Pakistan well short of the target.
Turning Point
Pakistan needed 67 from the last five overs. Babar Azam was still at the crease as the last beacon of hope for Pakistan. Azam Khan was at the other end. The wicketkeeper batsman tried to unleash a lofted drive from the first delivery of the 16th over. But Adam Milne perfectly disguised a slower delivery and Khan was caught at long off by Kane Williamson. Shaheen Afridi promoted himself up the order, coming in at number 7 to force the issue. But Milne was on song and had the Pakistani skipper caught by the keeper. The last two deliveries of the over yielded 10 runs. Ben Sears was brought into the attack to deliver the 17th over. He dismissed Babar Azam on the second ball of the over. Usama Mir was also sent back to the pavilion as Pakistan were thrown out of the game after these 12 deliveries. The muscle flexing from the Kiwi quicks was enough to seal the game before the 19th over.
Match Result
New Zealand breezed past Pakistan in the first T20 by beating them by a healthy margin of 46 runs and securing a 1-0 lead in the first of five T20 matches.
Player of the Match
Daryl Mitchell was unanimously selected as the man of the match for his blistering innings of 27 runs from 61 deliveries. His innings propelled New Zealand beyond the 200 mark and was the main difference maker between the sides.
Brief Scorecard
| New Zealand Total: 158/5 (20 overs) | Pakistan Total: 180/10 (18 overs) |
| Daryl Mitchell 61 (27) | Babar Azam 57 (35) |
| Kane Williamson 57 (42) | Saim Ayub 27 (8) |
| Abbas Afridi 3/34 (4 overs) | Tim Southee 4/25 (4 overs) |
| Shaheen Afridi 3/46 (4 overs) | Ben Sears 2/42 (4 overs) |
Match Highlights
Match Wrap-Up
It was an easy victory for New Zealand in the end. The Kiwis posted a mammoth total on the board thanks to fifties from skipper Kane Willamson and Daryl Mitchell. Pakistan were on par with the target up until their first ten overs. But a brilliant performance from Southee made sure New Zealand would secure victory within 18 overs of the second innings. Babar Azam was the lone warrior of Pakistan by scoring 57 from 35 balls. But none of his compatriots spent enough time to cause serious trouble for the hosts. The two sides will renew their rivalry at Seddon Park in Hamilton. It will be second match of a five match series that promises to offer a lot of action-packed passages of cricket.
