Pakistan laid claim to being the best Twenty20 side in the world Sunday after beating New Zealand in the series-deciding third Twenty20 match in Mount Maunganui. The 18-run victory gave Pakistan a come-from-behind 2-1 series win that will see them overtake New Zealand at the top of the world rankings.
Pakistan’s skipper Sarfraz Ahmed leaped with delight after the final ball as Pakistan pulled off back-to-back wins over the hosts. They were 1-0 down after completion of the first T20I but they coped under pressure and comeback perfectly to clinch the series.
Batting first on a friendly wicket, Pakistan reached 181 for the lost of 6 wickets in stipulated 20 overs with Fakhar Zaman making 46 off 36 at the top of the innings. Umar Amin led a late charge that saw 58 runs scored in the final four overs.
For New Zealand, Ish Sodhi and Mitchell Santner picked up two wickets each.
In reply, New Zealand was never up to the chase as they kept on losing wickets in quick succession. They found themselves 18 runs short of the target after completion of prescribed 20 overs. They managed to score 163 runs with the lost of 6 wickets. Fakhar Zaman topped their batting card with 46 runs, followed by 29 runs from Sarfraz Ahmed.
For Pakistan, Shadab Khan bowled very economical spell and picked up 2 wickets in his bowling quota of 4 overs. He only expensed 19 runs in his spell.
Shadab Khan was judged as player of the match whereas Mohammad Amir was elected as player of the series.
