Pakistan, Kiwis battle with series on the line
dubai — Having arrested the slide in Abu Dhabi, Pakistan arrive in Dubai with the One Day International series against New Zealand on the line.
Pakistan finally managed to put a halt to a 12-match losing streak against the Black Caps dating back to December 2014 when they won by six wickets in the UAE Capital, late on Friday night.
And now, Sarfraz Ahmed and his men stand on the threshold of what could be a first series win against the Kiwis in seven years if they come out on the right side of the result at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Sunday night.
The last time Pakistan beat New Zealand was when they toured the island southwest of the Pacific Ocean in 2010-11, edging the six-match segment 3-2. Only all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez remains from that Pakistan side, while the Black Caps have two members — batsman Ross Taylor and pacer Tim Southee from that team.
Since then, it is the Kiwis who have had a hold on Pakistan, winning away and at home 3-2 and 2-0 respectively in the 2014-15 season and at home 2-0 and 5-0 in 2015-16 and 2017-18 respectively.
So, this would be as good an opportunity to correct that when they resume their rivalry at the ‘Ring of Fire’ on the morrow.
After that 47-run debacle in the first ODI in Abu Dhabi last Wednesday, Pakistan fronted up and responded in stellar fashion on Friday night by having the measure of the Kiwis. Bustling young talent, the 18-year-old Shaheen Shah Afridi gave the Black Caps a harrowing time with his left-arm pace fetching four wickets and move him on top of the wicket takers list with eight wickets.
Having kept the visitors down to 209 for nine despite a defiant 86 by Ross Taylor, the Pakistan batsmen blunted and took the sting out of the Kiwi bowling attack. And although opener Imam-ul-Haq had to retire hurt after Lockie Ferguson’s ripper beat him for pace and hit him on the helmet grille, his partner Fakhar Zaman and Babar Azam took Pakistan to the doorstep.
It was then left to Hafeez to steer them home to a comfortable six-wicket win and with 57 balls to spare.
“The key to success is going to be the way we go about our business. It is going to be the tone we set, going to be the intensity, we bring to the game. The key thing we’ve done is our ability to take wickets through the middle overs. So, if we can do that, everything should be great,” said coach Mickey Arthur.
Imam-ul-Haq is out of danger after scans revealed everything was fine but the 22-year-old southpaw remains under observation. If he is ruled out, Hafeez could move up the order.
Pakistan now have the whiff of another series win on the back of their T20 supremacy and they will be looking to close it out on Sunday night and reduce the Asia Cup catastrophe to a distant memory.