Pakistan have suffered two defeats in a row New Zealand in their ongoing five-match T20I series. As New Zealand played with a second division team due to the participation of their main players Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, Pakistan should dominate the series at home. However, the Men in Green have disappointed so far, trailing 2-1 in the series with one game to go.
The performance of Babar Azams Page just before T20 World Cup 2024 was criticized by fans and former Pakistan players. Babar then discussed the team’s tactics for the upcoming prestigious tournament.
Pakistan’s second consecutive defeat against New Zealand
After being tasked with batting first in the game, New Zealand set a target of 178 runs for seven wickets, highlighted by a remarkable innings from Tim Robinson (51 of 36), Tom Blundell (28 of 15) and Dean Foxcroft (34 of 26).
In response, Fakhar ZamanHis innings of 61 runs off 45 balls kept the home team competitive after the top three batters were dismissed early. Afterward, Imad Wasim played an unbeaten innings of 22 runs off 11 balls but it proved insufficient to secure the team victory. Pakistan failed in the end and lost the game by four runs as they finished at 174/8.
Addressing the defeat at the post-match press conference, Pakistan captain Babar praised Fakhar and Imad for their contributions and also praised the team’s bowlers. He later commented that their loss in the game was unfortunate.
“They (New Zealand) started well but our bowlers made a good comeback, we stuck to one length. We lost a number of wickets in the first six overs. Fakhar’s innings was excellent, unfortunately we couldn’t catch up, Imad also played a good innings. It was a different surface, the average score here is 190 and we did a good job of limiting it and it was a trackable overall score. “Our children did well,” Babar said during the post-match press conference, quoted by TOI.
Babar Azam talks about plans for the 2024 T20 World Cup
Regarding the team’s strategy for the 2024 T20 World Cup, Babar mentioned that they are experimenting with different approaches in every match and intend to finalize their plans before the epic tournament.
“We try something new and different every game. Hopefully we will be happy before we start the T20 World Cup.” explained the 29-year-old.
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Pakistan will play the series decider on Saturday
Pakistan will face New Zealand in the final match of the T20I series. Although they cannot win the series, the Asian giants will try their best to level it. The clash between the two teams will take place at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.