Pakistan tour of New Zealand 2020-21, 3-match T20I series, Third T20I, New Zealand vs Pakistan – Pakistan won by 4 wickets
Tuesday, Dec 22, 2020, McLean Park, Napier
It was a complete collapse from the Pakistan top-order in the first T20I of the series but a Hafeez special knock helped them recover in the second T20I. However, the home team New Zealand won both these games to take an unassailable lead of 2-0 in the series. Coming into the third and final game of the series, Pakistan needed much needed boost from their batsmen to register at least a consolation victory. And wicket-keeper batsman Mohammad Rizwan duly stepped up for this task in Napier!
Having opted to bowl first, Pakistan bowlers did well to concede just 47 runs in the powerplay besides bagging the wickets of Martin Guptill and Kane Williamson. And then a late surge from the home team carried them to 173/7 in 20 overs. Devon Conway starred with the bat for hosts with a half-century (64 off 45, 7 fours, 1 six). Tim Siefert (35 off 20) and Glenn Phillips (31 off 20) scored 30s each.
Scott Kuggeleijn (14 off 6) too contributed with the bat during the second half of the innings! Faheem Ashraf was the pick of Pakistan bowlers with 3 for 20 from his 4 overs. Shaheen Afridi (2/43) and Haris Rauf (2/44) are the other wicket-takers among Pakistan bowlers. However, the latter duo has conceded runs at more than 10 runs per over which let Kiwis to score some quick runs!
During the chase, Pakistan lost opener Haider Ali inside the powerplay with 40 runs on the board. Then a 72-run partnership between Mohammad Rizwan (89 off 59) and Mohammad Hafeez (41 off 29) helped Pakistan get close to the target! Eventually, Pakistan chased down the target with 4 wickets in hand and 2 balls to spare. Among New Zealand bowlers, Tim Southee and Scott Kuggeleijn bagged 2 wickets each while James Neesham and Kyle Jamieson bagged a wicket each.
Mohammad Rizwan has been adjudged as the ‘Player of the Match’ for guiding Pakistan to a 4-wicket victory in this game. New Zealand wicket-keeper Tim Siefert bagged the ‘Player of the Series’ award for scoring consistently throughout the series – 176 runs in 3 innings. With this the 3-match T20I series comes to an end with hosts clinching the trophy by 2-1.
Brief Scores: Pakistan – 177/6 in 19.4 overs (Mohammad Rizwan – 89, Mohammad Hafeez – 41, Tim Southee – 2/25, Scott Kuggeleijn – 2/40) defeated New Zealand – 173/7 in 20 overs (Devon Conway – 63, Tim Siefert – 35, Faheem Ashraf – 3/20, Shaheen Afridi – 2/43) by a margin of 4 wickets
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