1st ODI Match PAK Vs NZ 2018

PAK Vs NZ MAtch

New Zealand Beat The Pakistan

In

1^st ODI Match

New Zealand win by 47 runs

ODI 1 of 3 (NZ Lead 1 - 0)

Pakistan - 219 47.2/50 ov RR: 4.62

New Zealand - 266/9 50/50 ov RR: 5.32

v New Zealand have won by 47 runs

v Sarfraz vigil at the crease ended, Kiwis push

v Sarfraz/Imad century stand threatens Kiwi's victory push

v Boult hat-trick throws Pakistan chase into disarray

v Ross Taylor's 42nd half-ton recovers for New Zealand

A run victory in the first ODI against Pakistan in a match defined by some exceptional bowling displays.

The New Zealand speedster went one better than Pakistan twirler Shadab Khan, who earlier claimed three wickets from four balls to halt New Zealand after Colin Munro and Ross Taylor collaborated for a 130-run partnership after Pakistan had dominated the first hour.

Shaheen Afridi and Shadab both scooped four-fors, but the tail wagged to propel the Kiwis to a respectable if not remarkable first innings score of 266, before Boult got stuck into Pakistan’s top order. First, he bowled danger man Fakhar Zaman off his pads, before Babar Azam nicked through to slip and Mohammad Hafeez was trapped in-front, with the home side in a funk at 8/3.

Fresh off the plane – the left-arm paceman missed the Twenty20 International series to attend the birth of his first child – it didn’t take long for Boult to announce his arrival as he joined Danny Morrison and Shane Bond as the only male New Zealanders to claim an ODI hat-trick.

Shoaib Malik and Imam ul-Haq – who was just four years old when Malik made his debut against West Indies at Sharjah in October 1999 – combined to slowly rebuild the Pakistan innings, in similar fashion to Taylor and Latham in the first.

Ardent Pakistan fans had to dig a little deeper for optimism when a double strike ended the 63-run fourth-wicket partnership, as Pakistan fell to 73/5. Firstly, Lockie Ferguson dismissed Imam (34 from 36 balls), who mistimed a pull to de Grandhomme, with the catcher then nabbing Malik (30 from 50) the next over, who picked out Williamson at mid-off.

Sarfraz Ahmed and Imad Wasim also combined effectively. Sarfraz was his usual busy self and although Imad focused more on resistance in the early part of his knock, successive maximums in the 36th over signalled Pakistan weren’t going down without a fight.

 Pakistan captain Sarfraz Ahmed scored 64 from 69 deliveries Pakistan captain Sarfraz Ahmed scored 64 from 69 deliveries

The skipper soon reached his half-century as the pair clocked up their century stand, which threatened to give this match the climax it deserved until de Grandhomme (2/40, plus two catches) picked up the vital scalp of Sarfraz (64 from 69 balls) – bowled missing a dab to third man – as we entered the final ten overs. Imad reached fifty before Southee got his man, while Ferguson claimed the wicket of Shaheen as New Zealand got their series off to a promising start.

Earlier, after winning the toss and electing to bat, New Zealand’s George Worker and Colin Munro didn’t last long – the former edging tamely to Sarfraz Ahmed off Shaheen Afridi (4/46) before the teenage sensation removed his fellow opener lbw.

 Ross Taylor helped to rebuild the New Zealand innings after an inauspicious start Ross Taylor helped to rebuild the New Zealand innings after an inauspicious start

The early inroads shackled the New Zealand batsmen in the middle overs, but Kane Williamson and Taylor kept the scorecard ticking along before the former picked out short midwicket off a Shadab long hop.

Latham – who boasts an exceptional record in Asia – joined Taylor at the crease as the duo set about hitting over half of their team’s total. It wasn’t a demolition job by no means, just accomplished batting, calmly finding the gaps without too much risk. Only 20 of Latham’s 68 runs came from boundaries, but the Kiwis were hitting five runs an over without breaking sweat.

Some cagey batting followed from the tail until Ish Sodhi hit 24 – he entered the game with a a total of 13 ODI runs – providing an unlikely cameo with three welcome sixes off Hasan Ali at the death. Boult also smashed a maximum off the last ball by Junaid Khan as Pakistan conceded 50 runs off the final five overs in an innings full of ebb and flow.

Pakistan will look to level the three-match series when the two teams meet in the second ODI on Friday.