Pakistan vs New Zealand ODI Tips - Pakistan Slight Favourites On Another Batting Featherbed

Pakistan and New Zealand will square off in the final of a quick tri-series in the final preparation before the Champions Trophy starts next week. Pakistan made their way into the final after beating South Africa in a high-scoring thriller in the third match while New Zealand have had no qualms with two wins in two games in this series. 

New Zealand first beat Pakistan in the opener by scoring 330 and then defending that total comfortably. In their second match, New Zealand chased down 305 against South Africa led by Kane Williamson’s first hundred in a long time in ODIs. 

South Africa were in the hunt for a large part of that game after Matthew Breetzke’s 150 off 148 balls. Matt Henry and Will O’Rourke picked up two wickets each but no other bowler managed much success. In response, Williamson led the chase with a crafty 133 off 113 balls on a flat pitch. Devon Conway gave him good company with 97 off 107 balls with nine fours and a six. 

Pakistan, on the other hand, were pushed a lot more by South Africa in the virtual semi-final. South Africa managed to score 352 for 5, led by 80-plus scores from Temba Bavuma, Breetzke and Heinrich Klaasen. Shaheen Afridi was the only bowler to pick up two wickets in his spell of 10 overs. 

Faced with a daunting target, Pakistan were taken home by hundreds from captain Mohammad Rizwan (122 off 128 balls) and Salman Agha (134 off 103 balls). Their stand of 260 runs was a record partnership for the fourth wicket. Eventually, Pakistan chased down the score with an over and six wickets to spare. 

To add to that, the boundaries have been shortened, which makes for batting-friendly conditions. The hosts would be desperate for Babar Azam to find some form though, which seems to be the only missing piece for Pakistan. 

While this series lacks context apart from a warm-up for the Champions Trophy, Pakistan would still want to win a trophy at home to give them confidence and momentum going into a busy home season. As a result, they may not make too many changes to their playing XI. 

New Zealand have looked like the side to beat in this tri-series. Their batting has stood out with firepower through their middle and top order. 

They seem to have most bases covered, including their spin-bowling department which includes Mitchell Santner and Michael Bracewell, who are accurate finger spinners.

"Obviously playing one day cricket here when other teams haven't probably been playing a huge amount of one day cricket is nice," Williamson said. 

"It helps us to try and get as familiar as you can with our roles and how we operate as a unit and also the conditions. Having said that, we know that each game is a match in isolation. 

"When you come to a tournament like Champions Trophy, the top eight teams on their day giving the conditions, anyone can beat anybody, so a really competitive tournament.”

Like Pakistan, New Zealand may not play around too much with their squad apart from giving some players rest ahead of the Champions Trophy.