New Zealand leads the five-match T20I series against Pakistan after a dominant victory in the first match. Pakistan struggled to reach 91 runs in 18.4 overs, allowing New Zealand to chase down the target in just 10.1 overs with one wicket lost. NZ captain Michael Bracewell reflected on the match, highlighting the challenge of managing bowler Kyle Jamieson’s overs, suggesting they could have restricted Pakistan further if he had bowled more. Player of the match Jamieson praised his teammates for performing well in favorable conditions, applauding the depth in their squad during this clinical team win.
New Zealand (NZ) currently leads the five-match T20I series with a score of 1-0. They bowled out Pakistan (PAK) for a mere 91 runs in 18.4 overs, chasing down the target in just 10.1 overs while losing only one wicket. Following the victory, NZ captain Michael Bracewell shared his thoughts during the post-match presentation. He expressed his admiration for the crowd and remarked on the challenge of managing Kyle Jamieson’s return for a fourth over. Bracewell believed that if he had allowed Jamieson to bowl that over, they could have limited Pakistan to an even smaller total.
“It was an excellent day in front of a fantastic crowd. We’ve faced them domestically (on the pace attack), and having them on our side made it extremely challenging for Pakistan, who couldn’t recover. I had to hold Kyle back for his 4th over; he was ready and at the top of his mark. It was tough to keep him off the attack; perhaps we could have restricted them to a lower total if I had let him bowl earlier. It’s always a challenge to manage the bowlers, especially in shorter formats like T20s,” said New Zealand captain Michael Bracewell.
Kyle Jamieson, the Player of the Match, also commented on the game during the post-match presentation. He expressed his happiness at being back on home soil and enjoyed the favorable bowling conditions. He commended his teammates, highlighting their depth and ability to capitalize on these conditions. He particularly praised Jacob Duffy, who partnered with him during the powerplay, as well as Zakary Foulkes.
“It felt great to be back on home turf with these favorable conditions. Duffy and I took advantage of the situation, and it was nice to perform well. We plan for a bit of chaos (in T20Is), expecting some balls to go out of the park. But with these conditions, maintaining an upright seam made our job much easier; it was a truly clinical team performance. We have a talented group with great depth and players who excel in these conditions. We had a solid team win. Duffy did an outstanding job at both the beginning and the end of the innings, and Zak (Foulkes) also contributed significantly. Overall, it was a great team effort from the bowlers,” Jamieson remarked.
The fiery spells from pacers Jacob Duffy and Kyle Jamieson thwarted a revamped Pakistan team, led by Salman Agha, preventing them from launching their new cricketing phase as intended. As a result, they faced a hefty defeat by nine wickets in the first T20I on Sunday. The team included three debutants, Hasan Nawaz and Abdul Samad, both of whom were dismissed for low scores, alongside pacer Mohammed Ali.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Topics mentioned in this article