Home Sports Pakistan bat first, New Zealand hand debut to Jacob Duffy

Pakistan bat first, New Zealand hand debut to Jacob Duffy


Report

Both teams have new captains in the absence of the regulars – Mitchell Santner for NZ and Shadab Khan for Pakistan

Pakistan won the toss against New Zealand and chose to bat

Shadab Khan, Pakistan’s captain in Babar Azam’s injury-enforced absence, won the toss and opted for first strike in the first T20I against New Zealand in bright and sunny Auckland, and named a very different XI to the one that did duty in the final fixture against Zimbabwe at home in Rawalpindi last month.

Shadab himself, Mohammad Hafeez, Faheem Ashraf, Wahab Riaz and Shaheen Shah Afridi were all in the line-up for this game, replacing Fakhar Zaman, Usman Qadir, Muhammad Musa, Mohammad Hasnain and Azam.

“Looks a very good pitch, we want to put a score [on the board],” Shadab said at the toss. “We’ll miss Babar but it’s a good opportunity for the rest to step up. We’ve prepared well and now it’s show time.”

This is only the ninth time a team has opted to bat in 23 T20Is at Eden Park. Irregular though that may seem, it does track with Pakistan’s strategy. They have an excellent bowling attack, which is very good at restricting oppositions and at standing up when the pressure is at its highest. Even so, Shadab and his men will have to buck history given six of the eight previous teams that tried his trick failed to win the game.

New Zealand, of course, are without Kane Williamson, who is back home with his partner Sarah Raheem, who delivered their first child earlier this week. Mitchell Santner is their designated leader for this game, and they have a debutant in Jacob Duffy.

“We’re pretty happy to bowl,” Santner said. “Another great opportunity to lead the side. Jacob Duffy makes his debut. Todd Astle and Doug Bracewell miss out. Every time you represent your country, it’s a big deal, and he’ll take the challenge on. Pakistan are a quality side, with pace and spin and quality in the batting. We’re ready for them.”

New Zealand: Martin Guptill, Tim Seifert (wk), Devon Conway, Glenn Phillips, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner (capt), Mark Chapman, Scott Kuggeleijn, Ish Sodhi, Jacob Duffy, Blair Tickner

Pakistan: Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Abdullah Shafique, Haider Ali, Mohammad Hafeez, Shadab Khan (capt), Khushdil Shah, Imad Wasim, Faheem Ashraf, Wahab Riaz, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf



Source link

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Must Read

Leading 10 Best Cross Country Moving Firms

If you're planning to move to Chula Panorama, The Golden State, you must recognize that there are many relocating firms that offer long-distance moving...

PETER HITCHENS: USA wants war to drive Russia back to the Stone Age

This is not a war between Ukraine and . It is a war between the USA and Russia, in which both sides are cynically...

nft хасбика

Добрый День, Дорогие Друзья. Сейчас я бы хотел поведать малость про aglet nft. Я думаю Вы искали именно про nft pop it trade?! Значит эта больше актуальная...

Nintendo Switch tops lifetime sales of Wii console

By Sam Nussey TOKYO, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Nintendo Co Ltd sold 18.95 million Switch video game consoles in the nine months to the...

The Fact About karaoke That No One Is Suggesting

kangnam 셔츠룸후기 강남셔츠룸시스템 - An Overview