NZ beats Pakistan by 10 wickets in 2nd T20, levels series

Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi won the toss and made a decision to bat first.

The best New Zealand can now hope for, after dropping the opener of the three-game set by 16 runs on Friday at Eden Park in Auckland, is a boost from sixth to fifth – if, and only if, the Black Caps can win the final two matches.

After winning the toss and batting first, Pakistan have scored 168 runs in the second T20 global against New Zealand at Hamilton.

The difference between the two sides came in the middle order, and New Zealand will want to see massive improvement from the likes of Corey Anderson, Luke Ronchi and Mitchell Santner who were all bowled for ducks.

Pakistan has a star-studded bowling line-up that is more than capable of stalling New Zealand’s attacking style of batting.

The batsmen looked comfortable against the short-pitched fast bowling while the bowling line led by Umar Gul, Wahab Riaz, Amir and Imad Wasim gave New Zealand no quarters.

Todd Astle took the catch in the deep off a Mitchell Santner long-hop that should have been smoked into the stands. New Zealand, on the other hand, would not have thought that they will be so easily outplayed by the visitors. Instances of New Zealand’s batsmen demolishing the opposition have been common in the recent past, but there may not be too many of those in this series.

Akmal was unbeaten on 56 off 27 deliveries at the close while Malik made 39 off 30. Corey Anderson and Grant Elliott are still dusting off rustiness after extended spells on the sidelines.

Except Kane Williamson and Colin Munro, no New Zealand batsman managed to create any kind of trouble for Pakistani bowlers.

New Zealand played three pacers in the previous match, Trent Boult, Matt Henry and Adam Milne, who took a four-wicket haul. It has been 11 innings since Ahmed Shehzad last scored a fifty in an global game, while Sohaib Maqsood is also due for a big score, having gone nine essays without a half-century.