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The first semi-final of the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2022 will see New Zealand lock horns with Pakistan at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Wednesday, November 9. Ahead of the game, let's revisit the previous NZ vs PAK T20 World Cup game and the scorecard of that match.
New Zealand squared off against Pakistan in a Super 12 game in their last T20 World Cup meeting at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on October 26, 2021. It was a low-scoring encounter, which the Men in Green won.
Haris Rauf wreaked havoc with the ball after Babar Azam asked the Kiwis to bat first. Banking on skipper Kane Williamson (25) and Devon Conway (27), the Blackcaps managed to post a decent total of 134/8 on the board. Rauf returned with figures of 4/22 from his four overs.
New Zealand made some tactical changes in the game like opening with Daryl Mitchell and sending James Neesham to No. 4. However, those moves didn't work against an in-form Pakistani pace attack.
Mitchell and Martin Guptill got their side off to a relatively cautious start. They added 36 runs for the first wicket before Rauf drew first blood. Mitchell also departed soon after, scoring 27 off 20 balls.
Pakistan's bowlers kept mounting the pressure, hitting the right line and length. The boundaries were hard to come by and the likes of Williamson and Conway had to rely on singles and doubles. Eventually, New Zealand could only muster 134 in their 20 overs.
PAK vs NZ Previous Match T20 World Cup - Babar Azam and Co. secured second win of the tournament
In response, Mohammad Rizwan got Pakistan off to a steady start, scoring 33 off 34 balls. However, wickets kept tumbling on from the other end as Babar, Fakhar Zaman, and Mohammad Hafeez failed to get going with the bat.
New Zealand sensed some hope after reducing Pakistan to 87/5. Given that the conditions were slow and Ish Sodhi was bowling from one end, the game was poised for a perfect finish. But quickfire knocks from Shoaib Malik (26* off 20) and Asif Ali (27* off 12) took the game away from the Kiwis.
Pakistan will hope to replicate a similar performance, while the Blackcaps will be eyeing revenge and book a final berth for the second successive time.
