Metropolis Desk-
It was a night to remember for Pakistan as they hammered New Zealand by 88 runs in the opening T20I on Friday at the Gadaffi stadium in Lahore. Following the win, Babar Azam matched MS Dhoni.
Babar, who played his 100th T20I for Men in Green at his home ground, has equaled Dhoni’s 41 wins in T20Is which is a joint-second place among captains with the most wins in T20I matches. With the win, Pakistan has taken a crucial 1-0 lead in the series, reports India.com.
“I wasn’t expecting this (my 100th T20I game), grateful that I have achieved this feat. It was a team effort. We lost early wickets, but Fakhar and Ayub built the innings. Saim has been improving day by day, wish him good luck. I think our batters set up a good total on this wicket. We had a good bowling line-up, Rauf bowled well, and so did the other bowlers. It’s good when you have many options. It was a collective effort as all the bowlers stuck to their plans,” Babar said after the win at the post-match presentation.
Earlier in the day, batting first, Pakistan was bundled out for 182. Fakhar Zaman and Saim Ayub were the highest scorers with 47 runs apiece. Chasing 203 to win, Kiwis were shot out for 94.
Haris Rauf with four wickets was the best bowler on display. His four wickets came for 17 runs in 21 balls. He was rightly awarded the man of the match. In the second game of the series, the hosts would like to wrap it up.
