5th T20I
Afridi along with the spinners has helped Pakistan team to level the series against spirited New Zealand
Pakistan scored 178/5 in 20 overs, where as New Zealand scored 169 in 19.2 overs.
So, finally Pakistan beat New Zealand by 9 runs.
The Kiwis arrived without nine frontline players and were anticipated to face a series sweep, especially as it served as preparation for the T20 World Cup in June.
Shaheen Afridi’s impressive bowling spell of 4-30 guided Pakistan to a series-levelling nine-run victory against a spirited New Zealand in the fifth and final Twenty20 match on Saturday.
Batting allrounder Josh Clarkson appeared to be steering New Zealand towards a stunning series win, but his last two partners ran themselves out while attempting to feed him the strike.
New Zealand’s innings concluded at 169 all out with four balls remaining, chasing Pakistan’s 178-5.
Clarkson achieved a career-best 38 not out off 26 balls.
Despite the absence of nine frontline players, New Zealand fought valiantly, nearly clinching the series win after being expected to be swept in the series.
This series served as preparation for the T20 World Cup in June.
Following a first-game washout and being bowled out for 90, they mounted a comeback, coming within four balls of stealing the series.
Pakistan, propelled by captain Babar Azam’s 69 off 44 balls, set a par score.
However, New Zealand’s disciplined spin and seam bowling troubled the home team in the middle overs.
Babar expressed that although the team achieved a competitive total, they aimed to score an additional 15-20 runs.
Throughout the series, Pakistan experimented with different combinations to assess their bench strength, aiming to identify areas for improvement without becoming complacent.
During the Power Play, Babar displayed fluent batting against the pacers, partnering with Usman Khan, who scored 31 off 24 balls.
However, Usman, recently banned by the United Arab Emirates for five years for switching his allegiance, had a below-par debut series, scoring only 59 runs in four innings.
Despite Ben Sears clean-bowling Babar with a fiery yorker, left-hander Fakhar Zaman (43) punished the seamer in the death overs, helping Pakistan score 55 runs in the last five overs.
New Zealand’s response cruised to 81-1 in eight overs before their top order encountered significant trouble against the spinners.
Opener Tim Seifert, absent from the last game due to a sore back, hammered Mohammad Amir for five boundaries and a six in the fast bowler’s initial two overs.
Seifert amassed 52 off 33 before being bowled by leg-spinner Usama Mir (2-21).
Mir claimed the crucial wicket of Mark Chapman (12) in his following over, as the left-hander attempted a sweep shot.
Michael Bracewell, elevating himself to No. 3 due to injuries to Dean Foxcroft and Tim Robinson, contributed 23 before being caught at short midwicket off leg-spinner Shadab Khan.
Cole McConchie was lbw, leaving New Zealand at 103-5.
Shaheen Afridi outsmarted Tom Blundell in the opening over and secured two wickets in two balls, with Jimmy Neesham unable to read the slower ball and Zak Foulkes falling to a brutal yorker.
Afridi then claimed his second four-wicket haul in T20s by dismissing Ish Sodhi.
Clarkson revitalized New Zealand’s hopes with two sixes and three boundaries, bringing the required runs down to 12 off the last over, but his last two partners were run out.
“A draw is a pretty fair reflection of the series,” Bracewell remarked.
“Credit to Pakistan, they played really well.
We lost a couple of wickets in the middle, and that put us on the back foot.
We were keeping the run rate in check, but those wickets were the turning point.”
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