Courtesy: PCB
On Friday, February 14, New Zealand won the ODI tri-series after hammering Pakistan by five wickets in the final match of the competition played at Karachi’s National Bank Stadium. Will O’Rourke shone with the ball and picked up four wickets to help his side restrict the hosts to a below par. The speedster's exceptional bowling show (4/43 in 9.3 overs) also got him the player of the match award.
Chasing an score of 243, the Kiwis lost their opener Will Young early to Naseem Shah but Devon Conway along with Kane Williamson looked confident and kept the team in the chase. However, the former skipper lost his battle to Salman Agha after scoring 34 off 49. After Williamson’s departure, Daryl Mitchell took the responsibility and produced a quality knock of 57 off 58, with the help of six fours. Along with Tom Latham, the right-handed batter stitched an 87-run stand to help the Black Caps have command over the match. Both batter departed after scoring their fifties and left the task for Glenn Phillips to conclude the contest.
Phillips played an unbeaten 20-run innings off 17 balls and took the team home with five wickets in hand and 28 balls to spare. Along with him, Michael Bracewell also stood at the middle until the end.
New Zealand’s disciplined bowling show contained Pakistan on 242
New Zealand looked dominating in the first innings which helped them to restrict the hosts at a score of 242 in 49.3 overs. Pacer Will O’Rourke picked up Fakahar Zaman in the fourth over of the match and delivered the first breakthrough to his team. Following Zaman, Saud Shakeel also returned to the dugout after falling to Bracewell. The right-handed batter could hit only eight runs.
Babar Azam, who was looking in fine touch, also lost his control and departed after notching up only 29 off 34. Like the previous game, Mohammed Rizwan and Salman Agha got the responsibility to take the team ahead but both failed against the Kiwi plan after scoring 40s. The regular fall of wickets impacted the Men in Green as they got bundled out on an average score in 49.3 overs. In the end, the Green Army couldn't taste success but their stalwart Salman Ali Agha became the player of the series for his superb performances across three matches. The right-handed player racked up 219 runs from his bat in three outings.
