Pakistan lost to New Zealand by 73 runs in the first ODI at Napier despite some hopeful moments. Mark Chapman was named the Player of the Match for his outstanding knock of 132 (111).
Here are the three things that didn’t go according to plan for the visitors:
Bowling failure despite early wickets
Pakistan began on a good note with the ball, getting New Zealand to 50/3, but could not take advantage of the early success. The bowling unit could not restrain Mark Chapman (132 off 111) and Daryl Mitchell (76 off 84), who put on a massive 199-run partnership for the fourth wicket. It did not improve with debutant Muhammad Abbas scoring 52 off 26 balls, and it became a cakewalk for New Zealand to score a record 344/9. The bowlers were not on top and leaked important runs in the death overs.
Batting collapsed after a good start
Pursuing 345, Pakistan’s chase seemed strong at 249/3, but a collapse of epic proportions saw them lose 7 wickets in 22 runs to be all out at 271. Babar Azam (78) and Agha Salman (57) fought hard, but Rizwan’s premature exit and middle-order frailty handed New Zealand a 73-run victory in Napier.
Failure of Captaincy and Batting by Rizwan
Mohammad Rizwan battled both as a captain and a batter. His field placements could not halt New Zealand’s revival, and his 30 off 34 had no impact. His dismissal at 164/3, getting behind to Muhammad Abbas, led to Pakistan’s downfall. Being unable to lead from the front, Rizwan’s batting and captaincy were shallow.
For the Latest Sports News: Follow RevSportz
The post NZ vs PAK: 3 Things That Went Wrong for Pakistan in 1st ODI appeared first on Sports News Portal | Latest Sports Articles | Revsports.
