Pakistan has taken a 1-0 lead in the three-match series by defeating New Zealand by 6 wickets in the first ODI (PAK vs NZ) played in Karachi. Batting first, New Zealand scored 255/9 in 50 overs, in response to which Pakistan won in 48.1 overs losing four wickets. Naseem Shah was adjudged player of the match for taking 5 wickets.
After losing the toss, New Zealand did not start well and Devon Conway got out without opening the account. After this, Finn Allen (29) and captain Kane Williamson (26) also could not take advantage of a good start. Tom Latham (42) and Darryl Mitchell (36) took the team past 100, but both of them could not score big. Michael Bracewell (43) and Glenn Phillips (37) shared a 66-run partnership for the sixth wicket to take the team past 200.
However, Naseem Shah bowled brilliantly to dash New Zealand’s hopes of reaching a big score. Kiwi team’s score from 213/5 to 220/8. Mitchell Santner (21) and Tim Southee (15 *) took the team beyond 250. Apart from Naseem, Usama Mir, who played the debut match, took two wickets and Mohammad Wasim and Mohammad Nawaz took one wicket each.
In response to the target, Pakistan also got its first blow in the sixth over at the score of 30 and Imam-ul-Haq was dismissed after scoring 11 runs. From here, captain Babar Azam (66) and Fakhar Zaman (56) added 78 runs for the second wicket to take the team past 100. After Fakhar’s dismissal, Babar Azam added 60 runs for the third wicket with Mohammad Rizwan.
Mohammad Rizwan played an unbeaten inning of 77 runs and took the team to victory with 11 balls to spare. He added 64 runs for the fourth wicket with Haris Sohail (32) and after his dismissal, combined with Agha Salman (13 *) to win the team. Michael Bracewell took two wickets for New Zealand.
