It was a Finn Allen show! Babar Azam, who hit his third successive half-century was reduced to a support act, once again, as New Zealand thrashed Pakistan in a Dunedin run-fest Wednesday. The 45-run win helped the Kane Williamson-less BlackCaps take an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match T20 International series. (NZ vs PAK 3rd T20I Scorecard | More Cricket News)
Pakistan captain Shaheen Shah Afridi won the toss and opted to bowl in the must-win game. Then Allen happened, with the first warning signs coming in the third over, one that was delivered by the visiting skipper himself -- 14 runs, featuring two back-to-back sixes. The Kiwi opener was only warming up, and the smallish University Oval ground didn't help the bowlers' cause, either.
Allen, 24, raced to his maiden T20I century, reaching the three-figure mark in just 48 balls, with a four off Afridi. In the next 14 balls, the right-handed batter from Auckland added 37 more runs to recreate a slew of batting records for his country, including the most sixes in an innings, the most runs in boundaries in a match and of course the highest individual score by a New Zealand cricketer in T20Is.
Allen's 16 sixes are also a joint world record, matching Hazratullah Zazai's feat (Afghanistan vs Ireland in Dehradun on February 23, 2019).
His 62-ball knock was laced with 16 sixes and five fours, resulting in 116 boundary runs. In three matches against Pakistan in the series, Allen has an aggregate of 245 runs -- 34 off 15, 74 of 41 and 137 off 62.
"It was good. I just tried to have a solid foundation and play good cricket shots,” said Allen, the player of the match. "What I've been working on is trying to have a solid foundation, a solid base and trying to build from there and hit the ball where it's supposed to go... It's about picking my moments when it's time to go and picking bowlers. I think for me just playing the ball on its merits and were it's supposed to go is what I've been trying to do."
The second-highest scorer in the Kiwi innings was wicketkeeper Tim Seifert, who hit 31 off 23. One more batter, Glenn Phillips, could reach a double-digit score (19 0ff 15). And yet, New Zealand, who were being led by Mitchell Santner in Williamson's injury-prompted absence, set a 225-run target.
For Pakistan, Haris Rauf leaked 60 runs for a brace at an economy of 15 per over. Mohammad Nawaz and Afridi also returned with shambolic figures of 1/44 and 1/43 from their respective four-over spells. They allowed the hosts to post 224/7, two runs fewer than New Zealand's format high of 226, which was achieved during the series opener.
ALSO READ: NZ's Record T20I Total In 1st Match
Pakistan's innings got off to a promising start with openers Saim Ayub (10 off 13) and Mohammad Rizwan (24 off 20) stitching a 23-run stand, but it was left to Babar Azam to make a semblance of chase. The former skipper, now batting at No.3, took guard in the fourth over, and tried his best to establish stands with his former opening partner Rizwan and Fakhar Zaman.
But the chase was effectively over when Ish Sodhi had Azam caught by Glenn Phillips for 58 off 37. Mohammad Nawaz and Shaheen Afridi added a 40-run stand for the seventh wicket in 20 balls, but by then the fate of the match and series had already been sealed, the chase and the result a mere academic interest.
Thus, Pakistan's losing run Down Under continued. The tourists arrived in Australia with renewed hopes to win a Test series but still suffered a 3-0 whitewash. A change of scenery and format, in New Zealand and T20 International, didn't work either.
In an ICC T20 World Cup year, and with a new captain in charge, Pakistan needed a strong start against the BlakCaps, but by the end of the third match, they were already 3-0 down with two more to play.
The fourth and fifth matches of the series are scheduled for Friday (January 19) and Sunday, at Hagley Oval, Christchurch. The ongoing NZ vs PAK T20I series can be streamed live on Amazon Prime.
