At a glance

AT A GLANCE

New Zealand v Pakistan, first Twenty20 international Where and when: Westpac Stadium, Wellington, 4pm Monday

(from): Martin Guptill, Colin Munro, Kane Williamson (captain), Ross Taylor, Tom Bruce, Glenn Phillips, Colin de Grandhomme, Mitchell Santner, Ben Wheeler, Tim Southee, Seth Rance, Ish Sodhi, Anaru Kitchen.

(from): Fakhar Zaman, Ahmed Shehzad, Umar Amin, Babar Azam, Haris Sohail, Mohammad Hafeez, Sarfraz Ahmed (captain), Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Aamer Yamin, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Nawaz, Rumman Raees.

NZ $1.45, Pakistan $2.60. rowly ahead of Pakistan and India on the team rankings.

Sodhi said of his lofty perch: ‘‘When I got told I was No 1 in the world I could have stayed there and do what I do now and let it be, but it gave me motivation to get even better.

‘‘Putting the ranking aside, being able to contribute in all facets of the T20 game is the opportunity that I’ve got, and will help me get back into those other sides and that’s a really important goal for me. While having No 1 is a really proud achievement, there’s a lot more out there for me.’’

Fitness, fielding and batting have all been the work-ons for Sodhi from coach Mike Hesson if he’s to add to his 18 ODIs and 14 tests.

He was eager to get back into afternoon training at the Basin Reserve, alongside his T20 partner in crime Santner. The pair’s combination went up a level at the 2016 World T20 and they remain one of the best one-two punches around, with Sodhi still honing his variations.

‘‘For legspin it’s the ball that goes away, the ball that goes in and the ball that goes straight. Different pace is crucial these days. Santner’s carrom ball is amazing but the one I really enjoy watching is the slow, wide one he bowls that always seems to be on a length but inside the wide line. If I can bring that into my game I could get even better.’’

New Zealand are without rested fast bowlers Trent Boult and Lockie Ferguson for game one of three, while Ross Taylor gets a T20 cameo in Wellington only.

For Pakistan the only way is up after their 5-0 ODI series whitewash, which gave New Zealand a 12th successive win at home and a hunger to extend that run.

‘‘They’re a really good team when they play with freedom and that’s what Twenty20 can do,’’ Sodhi said.