Courtesy: NZC
New Zealand’s Muhammad Abbas, who was born in Lahore, broke into record books as the batter with the fastest-ever ODI fifty on debut against Pakistan in Napier during the first ODI of the three-match series. Batting first after losing the toss, the Kiwi side lost their top-order batters early, but Mark Chapman along with Daryl Mitchell stitched a 199-run partnership for the fourth wicket and stabilised the hosts. Mitchell departed after scoring 76 off 84, while Chapman went on to score his third ton in the format. The 30-year-old departed after hitting 132 off just 111.
Abbas, who came to bat at six for New Zealand, took Pakistan’s bowling attack to the cleaners and made his debut scintillating. He notched up a 24-ball fifty and shattered the records of India’s Krunal Pandya and West Indies Alick Athanze, who racked up half-centuries in just 26 balls in their maiden 50-over matches. Abbas’s knock was studded with six boundaries (three fours and three maximums). The debutant’s fiery innings helped the BlackCaps to deliver a colossal target of 345 runs to the Men in Green.
New Zealand rout Pakistan by 73 runs in the opening ODI
Defending the total, New Zealand bowlers struggled in the initial stage of the innings, but Nathan Smith stepped up and delivered the first breakthrough to his team. The pacer got rid of Usman Khan, who scored quick 39 off 33. Following him, his opening partner Abdullah Shafique also left the crease after three overs. Babar Azam played some fine shots from his bat, but couldn’t score swiftly as per his team’s required run-rate.
Captain Mohammad Rizwan started his innings well, but failed to make it big as he could score only 30 off 34. In the 39th over, Babar fell after scoring 78 off 83 and following his departure, the visitors’ collapse began. The Green Shirts capitulated at a score of 271 after facing 44.1 overs. Nathan Smith bagged 4/60 figures in his 8.1-over spell and became the highest wicket-taker in the match while Chapman got the player of the match award for his standout batting. Both teams will next square off against each other in Hamilton on April 2.
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