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| New Zealand Wins 3rd T20I - Iftikhar's Hard Work in Vain |
New Zealand defeated Pakistan by four runs in the third T20 match of the series played at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.
New Zealand set the Pakistan team a target of 164 runs. On the final ball of the innings, the Pakistani side was bowled out for 159 runs while attempting to reach that total.
Middle-order batsman Iftikhar Ahmed played an aggressive inning of 60 runs in 24 balls, but unfortunately, he could not lead his team to victory. His dangerous innings included three fours and six maximums.
On behalf of New Zealand, James Neesham took three wickets for 38 runs, while Rachin Ravindra and Adam Milne got two wickets each.
New Zealand won the toss and decided to bat first, which proved beneficial in their favor.
Captain Tom Latham played an inning of 64 runs off 49 balls with the help of 7 fours and 2 sixes, and at the same time, Daryl Mitchell played an inning of 33 runs off 26 balls to finish the team's target at 163 in the allotted 20 overs.
On behalf of New Zealand, Will Young played an inning of 17 runs off 15 balls. His inning included 2 fours and 1 six.
For Pakistan, Shadab Khan grabbed one wicket, Haris Rauf and Shaheen Afridi each took two.
Pakistan's innings did not start well in pursuit of 163 runs, Pakistan captain Babar Azam, who scored a century in the previous match, could only score one run in six balls. At 87 runs in 14.1 overs, 7 batsmen of Pakistan had returned to the pavilion, then Faheem Ashraf and Iftikhar Ahmed played a responsible inning to bring Pakistan back into the match.
Faheem Ashraf played a brilliant inning of 27 runs off 14 balls which included two fours and as many sixes.
When 5 runs were required off 3 balls, then Iftikhar Ahmed was out by James Neesham.
The home side has a 2-1 lead in the 5-match T20 series.
Only one change was made by Pakistan in this match. Pakistan rested Zaman Khan and replaced him with Naseem Shah. The New Zealand team replaced Henry Shipley and Cole McConchie with Adam Milne and Ish Sodhi.
The final two T20 games in the series will take place in Rawalpindi on April 20 and 24.
The line-ups
Pakistan: Babar Azam (captain), Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Fakhar Zaman, Saim Ayub, Shadab Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf.
New Zealand: Tom Latham (C&W), Chad Bowes, Will Young, Daryl Mitchell, Mark Chapman, James Neesham. Rachin Ravindra, Adam Milne, Matt Henry, Ish Sodhi, Ben Lister