Courtesy: NZC
On Wednesday, April 2, New Zealand defeated Pakistan by a convincing margin of 84 runs in the second ODI at the Seddon Park in Hamilton, to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series. After an unbeaten 99 from Mitchell Hay in the lower middle order, which propelled New Zealand to 292/8 total in their allotted 50 overs, their pacer Ben Sears took a maiden five-wicket haul, which allowed them to take the win with ease despite some resistance from Pakistan lower order batters.
For the unversed, Mohammad Rizwan, the captain of Pakistan, won the toss and decided to field first, but New Zealand got off to a flying start, with their opening batters Rhys Mariu and Nick Kelly stitching a stand of 54 runs in just 6.2 overs before the latter was dismissed by Haris Rauf for 31 off 23 with four fours and two maximums. After that, Pakistan bowlers kept chipping away at the wickets, reducing the BlackCaps to 132/5 in the 27th over, gaining control over the proceedings.
Muhammad Abbas, the Lahore-born New Zealander, who scored the fastest ODI fifty on debut earlier in the series, shared a vital sixth wicket stand of 77 runs with Mitchell Hay, to bring the hosts back into the contest. Then, the wicket-keeper batter took the attack to the Pakistan bowlers in the final 10 overs of the innings, but unfortunately, he could only reach 99 runs in 78 balls with seven fours and seven sixes, missing out on a well deserved hundred.
In pursuit of the 293-run target, Pakistan never looked like getting close after losing their first five batters for single-digit scores within the first 12 overs of their innings, and it included the names of Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, and Salman Agha. In the 25th over of the innings, when Pakistan’s score read 93/7, Haris Rauf got hit on the helmet by a brutal bouncer from William O’Rourke, and it led to him getting eventually replaced by Naseem Shah in the batting order as concussion substitute.
Naseem Shah went on to score a fiery fifty, reaching 51 runs in 44 balls with four fours and four sixes, and he shared a 60-run stand for the ninth wicket with Faheem Ashraf, who got 73 runs in 80 balls with six fours and three sixes. Pakistan were eventually bowled out for 208 runs in 41.2 overs as Ben Sears completed his maiden five-wicket haul in ODI cricket, which also included his first wicket in the format, while Jacob Duffy got three wickets.
