New Zealand vs Pakistan 2nd Twenty20 2020

It was an action-packed first T20I at the Eden Park in Auckland and now, the caravan moves to the Seddon Park in Hamilton

MATCH CENTRE

New Zealand vs Pakistan 2nd T20i 2020 Match Prediction

It is New Zealand who are leading the three-match series 1-0 at the moment.

After opting to bat first in the first T20I, Pakistan were rocked early. The New Zealand fast bowlers just ran through the top-order in no time to leave the visitors 20 for four. Debutant Jacob Duffy seemed to be on fire as he picked up three wickets while Scott Kuggeleijn chipped in with one in the powerplay. Things looked really bleak when Pakistan lost Khushdil Shah in the 9th over and at that stage, the score was just 39.

However, a terrific fightback from the Pakistan lower order propelled them to 153/9 in their 20 overs. Stand-in skipper Shadab Khan led from the front as he made 42 from 32 balls. Imad Wasim contributed 19 off 14 while Faheem Ashraf provided the flourish at the end as he made 31 off 18 balls. As far as the New Zealand bowlers are concerned, Duffy ended up with four wickets while Kuggeleijn took three. Ish Sodhi and Black Tickner both of whom were on the expensive side took a wicket each.

In reply, the Kiwis were also in a bit of bother at 21 for two in the fourth over. However, Tim Seifert’s half-century put them back on track. Moreover, there were decent contributions from the middle-order which helped the hosts hunt the target down with seven balls to spare. Glenn Phillips made 23 while Mark Chapman chipped in with 34 before James Neesham and Mitchell Santner completed the run chase. 

Team news: New Zealand

For the last two T20Is of the series, most of New Zealand’s first-choice players return. Kane Williamson and Trent Boult return to the T20I side for the first time this summer. Williamson will play his first T20I since January this year while it’s been more than a year since Boult featured in a T20I. Meanwhile, Tim Southee and Kyle Jamieson alongside all-rounder Daryl Mitchell, all of whom were a part of the Test squad are also back in the mix. Thus, New Zealand are almost back to full strength.

Team news: Pakistan

Pakistan will miss their talisman and captain Babar Azam for the next two T20Is as well after he fractured his thumb during practice. The rest of the squad is fit and available for selection. Pakistan may not tinker a lot with their playing XI after just one loss.

New Zealand vs Pakistan 2nd T20i 2020 Predicted XI

New Zealand: Martin Guptill, Tim Seifert (wk), Kane Williamson, Devon Conway, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner (c), Kyle Jamieson, Scott Kuggeleijn, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Trent Boult

Pakistan: Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Abdullah Shafique, Haider Ali, Mohammad Hafeez, Shadab Khan (c), Khushdil Shah, Imad Wasim, Faheem Ashraf, Wahab Riaz, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf

New Zealand vs Pakistan 2nd T20i 2020 Key players

Shaheen Afridi: The 20-year-old fast bowler has become the leader of the attack for Pakistan across formats. Shaheen Afridi has been in very good form in white-ball cricket in the recent past and has been picking up wickets consistently. The left-arm pacer has looked lethal with the new ball and can be very effective at the death too.

Devon Conway: The left-handed batsman had a promising start to his international career with a couple of fluent knocks against West Indies. However, Devon Conway had his first failure in the first T20I and he will want to bounce back. Moreover, he is a part of the full-strength New Zealand T20I squad now and with Kane Williamson likely to return to the XI, he might bat at No. 4.