Friday saw the New Zealand cricket team secure a comfortable five wicket win over Pakistan with over four overs to spare. In doing so, the Kiwis claimed victory in the 2024-25 Pakistan Tri Nation Series and launched themselves as one of the favourites for the upcoming 2025 ICC Champions Trophy. This was Pakistan’s second loss to New Zealand in this tri-nation series, with the black caps also winning the opening game of the series by 78 runs. After bowling Pakistan out for just 242 runs, not a bad total on a slow pitch at the National Stadium in Karachi where runs were hard to come by, the New Zealand middle order sealed Pakistan’s fate. A crucial 87-run partnership for the fourth wicket between Tom Latham (56 runs) and Daryl Mitchell (57 runs) made the rest of the game a formality. As usual, the boys in green had plenty of chances to break the partnership and make the game a contest again, but were let down by poor fielding and decision-making. Shaheen Afridi and Saud Shakeel dropped straightforward catches while captain Mohammed Rizwan chose not to review a declined LBW call despite replays showing the ball would have taken out the middle stump. Had Pakistan capitalised on these opportunities, they could have triggered a middle-order batting collapse, given that Kane Williamson and Devon Conway had been dismissed within the space of 32 runs. But, rueing missed chances and Pakistan cricket go hand-in-hand.
The bitterness of this defeat is only compounded by the resounding victory that preceded it. Pakistan notched its first-ever successful 350-plus runs chase in one-day international (ODI) cricket in its second match of the series against South Africa. That game saw skipper Mohammed Rizwan and Salman Agha put together a 260 run partnership, with both batters attaining centuries, making it Pakistan’s third highest partnership in ODIs. Sadly, this spectacular batting form was not evident on Friday, underscoring the team’s penchant for consistent inconsistency. None of the batters managed over 50 runs, Mohammed Rizwan’s 46 of 76 balls being the highest score for the Pakistani batting line-up, and the top order (the first three batters) were dismissed with just 54 runs on the board. The only good news on the batting front was Babar Azam becoming the fastest player to reach 6,000 runs in ODI cricket, a record he now shares with South African great Hashim Amla. Sadly, this milestone was reached during yet another disappointing performance for Babar. The most accomplished Pakistani batter of his generation was caught and bowled by Kiwi all-rounder Nathan Smith for just 29 runs, capping off a dismal series where he never once crossed the 30-run mark.
Babar, and most of his fellow batters, will need to play a lot better to make the country proud once the champions trophy kicks off this coming Wednesday. Already, Pakistan’s standing as a host has been undermined with India refusing to play its games here and basically forcing everyone else to accede to playing it in Dubai. A disappointing performance in the tournament would be depressing not just for the country’s cricket fans but anyone who cares about the nation’s global reputation and standing. The few days left between now and the tournament are not much time for a turnaround but the Pakistan team’s past certainly shows that it is not beyond them.