Pakistan. (Photo Source: Twitter)
Pakistan and New Zealand will lock horns in the second T20I of the five-match series at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Saturday, April 15. The home team thumped the Kiwis in the first T20I by 88 runs courtesy of Haris Rauf’s sensational spell of 4/18 in 3.3 overs.
After opting to bat first, Pakistan were in trouble at 30/2 after 4.2 overs as Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan departed cheaply. However, the innings was held together by Fakhar Zaman and the PSL sensational Saim Ayub, who added 79 runs for the third wicket off just 42 balls. Ayub scored a brilliant 47 off 28, while Zaman scored 47 off 34. Courtesy of their knocks, Pakistan posted 182/10 in the first innings.
In reply, New Zealand were bundled out for just 94 as Haris Rauf picked up 4/18 in 3.3 overs. Mark Chapman was the top-scorer for the visitors, who scored 34 off 27 balls, while captain Tom Latham could only manage to score 20 off 24 balls.
The only positive from the game for the Kiwis was Matt Henry’s hat-trick, who finished with figures of 3/32 in 4 overs. Captain Latham has a huge task to regroup his side and help them recover from the massive loss. They won’t have much time on their hands as the second T20I begins just a day after the first game.
For Pakistan, they would hope to replicate their exceptional performance in the first game and look to improve one aspect of their game i.e playing out the full quota of overs. Their lower order suffered a collapse in the series opener, and they were bundled out in 19.5 overs.
The two teams have performed exceptionally over the past few years as they’ve featured in the knockout stages of the last two T20 World Cups.
Pakistan reached the semi-final of the 2021 World Cup and finished as the runner-up in the 2022 World Cup. On the other hand, New Zealand were the runners-up of the 2021 T20 World Cup and semi-finalists of the 2022 edition.
Pitch and Conditions
In the 18 matches played at the Gaddafi Stadium, there has been equal balance in the results as teams batting first have won nine matches while teams batting second have also won nine games. The highest total recorded at the venue is 209/3 by England against Pakistan in 2022. The highest total chased at the venue is 176/8 by Zimbabwe against Pakistan. The captain winning the toss will look to bat first and post a huge total on the board to get the opposition under pressure.
Probable Playing XIs for PAK vs NZ, 2nd T20I:
New Zealand
New Zealand have good batting talent in their squad, like Daryl Mitchell, Tom Latham and Tim Seifert. They would want their batters to take up responsibility and learn from their mistakes in the first game.
Probable Playing XI: Tom Latham (c & wk), Chad Bowes, Will Young, Daryl Mitchell, Mark Chapman, James Neesham, Rachin Ravindra, Adam Milne, Matt Henry, Ish Sodhi, Ben Lister
Pakistan
With the senior players returning to the squad, the hosts will look to once again dominate the Kiwis at home.
Probable Playing XI: Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Babar Azam (c), Fakhar Zaman, Saim Ayub, Shadab Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, Zaman Khan
PAK vs NZ Head-to-Head in T20Is:
Played – 30 Pakistan – 19
PAK vs NZ Broadcast Details:
Date – Saturday, April 15
Timing: 09:30 PM IST
Live Streaming: SonyLiv
Live Broadcast: Sony Sports Network
IPL 2024: Match 57, SRH vs LSG – Stats Preview of Players’ Records and Approaching Milestones
Tripura’s first international cricket stadium set to be ready by February 2025
‘Both are greats. It’s OK; they both will move on pretty quickly’ – Wasim Akram on Virat-Gavaskar saga
‘Everyone needs money to survive’ – Former IPL stars explain why league is ‘good deal’ for players
