Pak, NZ Lock Horns In 1st Semi-Final Clash In ICC Men’s T20 WC

Guwahati: On the verge of being eliminated, Pakistan received a lifeline when Netherlands ended South Africa’s hopes of reaching the ICC T20 World Cup semifinals. Now the Asian squad is preparing for the match against highly anticipated New Zealand in an effort to go to the championships.

When the two sides last faced off, it was in the New Zealand final of the tri-nation series and Pakistan won.

Pakistan will want to maintain its winning streak in order to advance to the summit match while the New Zealand team frequently turns up a polished performance.

“The moment Pakistan cricket fires off with intent and starts to reveal its teeth, we become a real threat. There will be no one in this world and this competition that would want to face us right now,” Pakistan team mentor Matthew Hayden said .

Pakistan seems solid on paper. Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, two of the top T20I batters in the world are its two openers. However, they have encountered a dry spell in the competition. While Rizwan has scored 103 runs in an identical number of matches, Azam has only scored 39 runs in five games.

But there is a solid number three in Shan Masood who can stabilize the innings. Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz and Mohammad Haris are among the powerful hitters in the middle order which is made up of a variety of floaters. In terms of left-right hand possibilities there is sufficient variation. Shaheen Afridi and Haris Rauf are the leaders of a world-class pace attack and two excellent spinners that have so far performed admirably in the competition.

New Zealand is a more superior team overall. On any given day, Devon Conway, Finn Allen, Glenn Phillips and James Neesham can destroy any bowling attack while captain Kane Williamson is there to offer leadership and steadiness. With 61 of 35 balls scored in his team’s most recent Group Stage game, he appears to have overcome strike rate concerns. The batting is strong and adaptable to many circumstances.

With dangerous pacers like Trent Boult, Tim Southee and Lockie Ferguson as well as spinners like Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi, the Kiwi bowling attack is also excellent.

With the exception of one game, New Zealand has won every game of the tournament. They destroyed the event hosts, Australia. One of their matches was postponed. Pakistan enters the match on a three-game winning streak. The team that prevails in Thursday’s second semifinal between India and England will face the winner

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