In the third and final one-day international, played in Karachi on Friday, New Zealand to an ODI series victory over Pakistan. Glenn Phillips scored an unbeaten half-century.
Phillips helped New Zealand escape a dangerous 181-5 in their chase of a 281-run goal with a 63-run innings off 42 balls that included four sixes and as many fours.
Despite Fakhar Zaman’s 101, Pakistan made 280-9 off 50 overs, overshadowed by his knock.
New Zealand required 100 runs off 87 balls when they came into bat. Phillips and Mitchell Santner added 64 runs for the seventh wicket and combined for 17 runs. Their partnership altered the tide of the game.
Kane Williamson and Devon Conway scored 53 each. Phillips completed the chase with 11 balls remaining. Team won the match.
In just 28 balls, Phillips reached his first ODI fifty. However, on the next delivery, wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan failed to hold a catch-off spinner Usama Mir, and Phillips was out.
The victory put New Zealand atop the one-day rankings and gave them their first ODI series victory in Pakistan in six attempts.
Williamson’s team has now won seven of their previous eight ODI series. He noted that even though Phillips wasn’t feeling well, he came out and played with a lot of freedom. Williamson also pointed out that Phillips’s performance was a reflection of the team’s mentality.
skipper Babar Azam
“At the midway point, I thought we were still in the game, but we made a few mistakes. Credit also goes to Pakistan for Glenn’s decision to play that knock. It was a fiercely contested series.
“When Rizwan and Fakhar played, it appeared like we would reach 300, but when wickets fall, it is difficult for new batters,” remarked Pakistani skipper Babar Azam.
In the final 10 overs, we “couldn’t quite execute with the ball.”
Williamson had partnerships with Conway and Mitchell. New Zealand lost 4 wickets in 45 runs. Despite Williamson’s efforts, the team lost the match.
Off-spinner Agha Salman (2-42) broke the two partnerships by catching Mitchell off a botched reverse sweep and dismissing Conway. Williamson was run out as the fourth wicket.
Zaman, Pakistan’s opener, established the groundwork for a respectable total.
After Pakistan won the toss and decided to bat first, the left-hander smashed 10 fours and a six.
During a third-wicket stand of 154 runs with Rizwan, who scored a well-played 77 with six boundaries, Zaman helped Pakistan recover from 21-2.
Pakistan got off to a bad start, losing Shan Masood without a run and top-ranked ODI batsman Azam for just four.
Tom Latham stumped Azam, who scored two half-centuries in the first two games, in the seventh over off of spinner Michael Bracewell.
When the innings needed to be rebuilt, Zaman was left in charge. He took a quick single to reach his eighth hundred, which was also his first three-figure ODI total in Pakistan.
Leg-spinner Ish Sodhi broke the stand by bowling Rizwan, while Zaman was run out while trying to take a quick single.
Tim Southee of New Zealand, a pitcher, finished with a final tally of 3-56, while Salman provided the innings a late boost by hitting 45 off of 43 balls.
Lineups
Finn Allen, Devon Conway, Kane Williamson (captain), Daryl Mitchell, Tom Latham (wk), Glenn Phillips, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, and Lockie Ferguson are all members of the New Zealand team.
The Pakistani players include Fakhar Zaman, Shan Masood, and Babar Azam (c). Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Haris Sohail, Agha Salman, Mohammad Nawaz, Usama Mir, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Mohammad Hasnain, and Haris Rauf are also part of the team.