Date: 17/1/2016
Hamilton - Disciplined bowling helped Pakistan overcome the power-packed New Zealand batting line-up in the opening Twenty20 International (T20I), and the Shahid Afridi-led side will be hoping to replicate that effort as they look to seal the series in the second match at Seddon Park, Hamilton today (Sunday).
The hosts, meanwhile, will aim to bounce back to stay alive in the series, and in order to do so, they need to show better application in all departments. Despite a 25-ball fifty by Colin Munro and a fighting half-century by Kane Williamson, New Zealand ended up well short of the target in the first game. The loss was chiefly due to a middle-order collapse, as they lost five wickets for only 19 runs after being in a comfortable position at 89 for 1 in the 10th over. Martin Guptill, Corey Anderson, Grant Elliott and Luke Ronchi, all fell cheaply as New Zealand squandered the advantage. Despite a line-up full of quality batsmen, New Zealand's weakness against spin came to the fore in the Auckland game.
In the bowling department, Mitchell Santner put on a fine show (2-14) but the rest weren't up to the mark. Trent Boult, the fast bowling spearhead, conceded in excess of 10 runs-an-over, while Adam Milne, despite picking up four wickets, had an expensive outing too. Todd Astle also had a forgettable debut. After a shaky start, New Zealand need to head back to the drawing board and do the basics right in order to keep their hopes of winning three successive T20I series at home alive.
A well-compiled fifty by Mohammad Hafeez and useful cameos from the lower-order batsmen, including Afridi, helped Pakistan post a par total in the opener. However, they could have scored more than what they eventually did as most of the batsmen failed to convert their promising starts to bigger knocks. It has been 11 innings since Ahmed Shehzad last scored a fifty in an international game, while Sohaib Maqsood is also due for a big score, having gone nine essays without a half-century. Both will be eager to make amends, as will Shoaib Malik, whose last T20I fifty came in December 2012.
Pakistan spinners - Afridi and Imad Wasim - did well to pull things back after Munro's early blitz. Mohammad Amir, in his comeback game, picked up one wicket for 31 runs while Wahab Riaz and Umar Gul shared five wickets between them, but leaked a lot of runs. An improved performance from the pacers is what Pakistan will be hoping for, while they will also bank on the spinners to deliver again to help the side move up in the T20I rankings. "We have a come across Afridi a few times in T20 and have a number of plans for him, but if you don't execute then he is able to take you apart with the bat. That cameo gave them some impetus. With the ball, we were able to take to him early but he came back really well. He is a fine cricketer and he has been around a while so he is a pretty wily campaigner," New Zealand coach Mike Hesson said.
Limited-overs pitches in Hamilton have generally been conducive to high scores. The weather is expected to remain fine for the evening, with temperatures in the low 20-degrees Celsius range.
The hosts will be in a must-win situation in the second match while Pakistan, who are one of the most unpredictable sides, would like to stay grounded after the first win and seal the series.
SQUADS:
NEW ZEALAND: Kane Williamson (c), Martin Guptill, Colin Munro, Corey Anderson, Grant Elliott, Luke Ronchi (wk), Mitchell Santner, Todd Astle, Adam Milne, Matt Henry, Trent Boult, Ross Taylor, Mitchell McClenaghan, Tom Latham.
PAKISTAN: Ahmed Shehzad, Mohammad Hafeez, Sohaib Maqsood, Shoaib Malik, Umar Akmal, Shahid Afridi (c), Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), Imad Wasim, Wahab Riaz, Umar Gul, Mohammad Amir, Iftikhar Ahmed, Aamer Yamin, Saad Nasim, Mohammad Rizwan, Anwar Ali.
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