Toss Pakistan opt to bat vs New Zealand
Pakistan’s captain Babar Azam chose to bat at the toss against New Zealand, in the visitors’ quest to make it three in three in the tri-series at Hagley Oval. They picked Naseem Shah in place of Haris Rauf in a like-for-like swap. Naseem has recovered sufficiently from Covid-19 that had forced him to miss six T20Is at home against England.
New Zealand welcomed back new dad Mitchell Santner in place of fast bowler Adam Milne who had suffered an abdominal strain, which limited his shift to just two overs in their last game. Santner will be backed up by previous match-winner Michael Bracewell and Ish Sodhi in a strong spin attack. With an eye on the World Cup, New Zealand have rested Trent Boult and brought in Blair Tickner. Finn Allen, meanwhile, retained his place at the top ahead of Martin Guptill.
New Zealand bowling coach Shane Jurgensen didn’t join the team on Wednesday after feeling unwell overnight.
New Zealand: 1 Finn Allen, 2 Devon Conway (wk), 3 Kane Williamson (capt), 4 Glenn Phillips, 5 Mark Chapman, 6 Jimmy Neesham, 7 Michael Bracewell, 8 Mitchell Santner, 9 Ish Sodhi, 10 Tim Southee, 11 Blair Tickner.
Pakistan: 1 Mohammad Rizwan (wk),2 Babar Azam(capt), 3 Shan Masood, 4 Haider Ali, 5 Iftikhar Ahmed, 6 Asif Ali, 7 Shadab Khan, 8 Mohammad Nawaz, 9 Mohammad Wasim, 10 Naseem Shah, 11 Shahnawaz Dahani.
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