Islamabad: New Zealand cricket team defeated Pakistan by four runs late Monday night in the third Twenty20 International match to keep the five-match series wide open with the latter leading 2-1.
The visitors won the toss and elected to bat first at the Gaddafi Stadium in Pakistan’s eastern city Lahore. They set a healthy total of 163 runs off 20 overs with the help of two beautiful knocks, including 64 runs from Tom Latham and 33 runs from Daryl Mitchell.
Chasing the target, Pakistan went into deep trouble after losing five wickets quickly at meager 55 runs off 10.2 overs. However, middle-order batter Iftikhar Ahmed appeared late in the inning with his blistering 60 runs off only 24 balls and was just a hit away from victory before getting caught out.
Pakistan’s team went all out at 159 runs at the last ball of the inning leading New Zealand to win the match and return to the series contest with two more matches to be played on April 20 and 24.
The Kiwis’ captain, who was declared man of the match, said, “it was a great game of cricket. We were pleased to get a competitive total on the board and it’s satisfying to get across the line and keep the series alive.”
“I think the whole squad will take a lot of confidence from this match moving forward. We pride ourselves on our fielding and keep the bar high every time we set foot into the middle,” added Latham.
