LAHORE: Pakistan defeated New Zealand by 88 runs in the first T20I at the Gaddafi Stadium on Friday.
Pakistan won the toss and elected to bat first in the opener game of the series. Fakhar Zaman and Saim Ayub scored 47 runs each and helped their team to post 182 runs on the board.
In reply, New Zealand bowled out for 94 runs. Haris Rauf took four wickets and Imad Wasim also grabbed two wickets. Pakistan lead the five-match series with 1-0.
New Zealand fast bowler Matt Henry registered hat-trick and restricted Pakistan to 182 runs. He becomes the fourth New Zealand player to register a hat-trick in the T20Is.
It is the 100th T20 international match for the Pakistan captain Babar Azam who debuted his career against England at Manchester on September 07, 2016.
On April 14, 2021, skipper Babar played an outstanding innings of 122 runs against South Africa in Centurion. He scored the highest individual score for Pakistan in the T20Is.
Pakistan have a good record against the Black Caps in the T20I, having won four of their last five matches.
Pakistan squad: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Ihsanullah, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shan Masood and Zaman Khan
New Zealand squad: Tom Latham (captain, wk), Chad Bowes, Mark Chapman, Dane Cleaver, Matt Henry, Ben Lister, Adam Milne, Cole McConchie, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Rachin Ravindra, Henry Shipley, Ish Sodhi, Blair Tickner, Will Young
