Pakistan win first T20 by 2 runs against New Zealand

New Zealand: 146/6 in 20 overs

Pakistan: 148/6

ABU DHABI - Pakistan beat New Zealand by two runs in the first Tw20 International at Abu Dhabi Cricket Stadium in UAE on Wednesday.

Earlier, Pakistan won the toss and decided to bat first against New Zealand in the first match of the three matches T20 series at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium on Wednesday.

The match was scheduled to start at 09:00pm. The match broadcast live on PTV Sports network & Ten Sports.

Team Pakistan maintained their top spot in the ICC T20 ranking with a 3-0 whitewash of Australia in Dubai last Sunday, cementing their place as the leading lights of the game's shortest format.

The Greenshirts have now bowled out their opposition 30 times in T20Is. New Zealand and Australia are the next with 19 each.

Under Sarfraz's captaincy, Pakistan won 26 out of 30 matches. They [Pakistan] lost four against West Indies, World XI, New Zealand, and Australia.

Sarfraz Ahmed, while talking to media, admitted New Zealand, who is two points behind Australia in the world rankings having played three fewer matches, will be a tougher opponent.

“New Zealand have a strong team with ideal batsmen for T20 and a balanced bowling attack so we need to set the tone from the first game by winning it," said Sarfraz.

New Zealand captain Kane Williamson is also aware of the threat posed by Pakistan and said his team needed to be at their best to beat the top team.

Pakistan have named an unchanged side to face New Zealand. However, opener Fakhar Zaman is still sidelined with the knee problem that forced him to sit out Sunday's game against Australia in Dubai.

The remaining two matches of the three-match series will be played in Dubai on November 3rd and November 4th. The two teams will then play three Tests and three one-day internationals.

Squads

Pakistan: Sarfraz Ahmed (captain, wicketkeeper), Shaheen Shah Afridi, Asif Ali, Hassan Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Babar Azam, Sahibzada Farhan, Mohammad Hafeez, Shadab Khan, Shoaib Malik, Waqas Maqsood, Usman Khan Shinwari, Hussain Talat, Imad Wasim, Fakhar Zaman

New Zealand: Kane Williamson (captain), Corey Anderson, Mark Chapman, Colin de Grandhomme, Lockie Ferguson, Adam Milne, Colin Munro, Glenn Phillips (wicketkeeper), Seth Rance, Tim Seifert, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor