New Zealand vs Pakistan: Chapman’s Spectacular Performance Leads to Series-Leveling Victory 1-1
In the thrilling New Zealand vs Pakistan cricket match, Mark Chapman’s outstanding innings of 87 not out off just 42 balls propelled New Zealand to a decisive victory, leveling the series at 1-1.
With his unbeaten 42-ball 87, New Zealand defeated Pakistan by seven wickets.
Pakistan 178 for 4 (Shadab 41, Babar 37, Sodhi 2-25) lost against New Zealand 179 for 3 (Chapman 87*, Foxcroft 31, Abbas 2-27) by seven wickets.
Whatever team plays for New Zealand, the series they play in Pakistan always ends up being competitive. Following a lackluster showing in the second Twenty20 International, a New Zealand team led by Mark Chapman easily defeated Pakistan in the third to tie the series at one wicket. With 10 balls remaining and seven wickets remaining, Chapman completed with an undefeated 87 off just 42 balls, easily defeating Pakistan’s total of 178.
When a similarly weaker side arrived in April 2023, Chapman was the most stunning player in New Zealand and easily continued where he had left off.
Big-hitters Tim Seifert and Tim Robinson gave New Zealand a promising start, but they were both dismissed by Abbas Afridi and Naseem Shah in the space of seven balls. It appeared like the chase was seriously heading off course at that moment, with inexperience ahead of it and Babar Azam having a fantastic array of bowling options.
However, Chapman showed that he was more than just a power hitter when he began dismantling the formidable team of Shadab Khan and Abrar Ahmed. He was aware that the target was not large enough to necessitate careless batting and used field manipulation to pick boundaries in three of the two bowled overs in a row. A stroke of good fortune occurred when Naseem mishandled a very easy chance after a misplaced sweep, which made the batsman retreat for a stray Iftikhar Ahmed over.
The reprieve ultimately came at a high cost to Pakistan. When he returned, Iftikhar was not treated with the same deference. He hit a massive six over his head, and as Chapman guided New Zealand towards Pakistan’s total with apparent skill, his flare also started to show. Because he would not only reach their objective, but also deal a psychological blow to New Zealand by destroying their two most valuable fast bowlers.
After two boundaries and a six in the fifteenth over reduced the asking rate to less than nine, Shaheen Shah Afridi was the first to take the brunt. Babar quickly got his best player, Naseem, back into the game, but he was in for more trouble. A pulled four, a carved six, a carved four, and a straight six. His first four balls in a 23-run over went like that, bringing the needed rate down to less than a run per ball.
While Dean Foxcroft was a capable backup, it’s probably necessary to mention that at this point, but this was really a one-man show. During their 117-run partnership, Foxcroft hit just two boundaries, and Chapman struck at a rate that was more than double that of Foxcroft, who found it difficult to maintain a strike rate above 100. Pakistan would understandably consider the effectiveness of their death bowling, but the fact that it only required one person to search for what they were able to accomplish begs the question of how sufficient that first-inning total was.
Also Read: New Zealand Clinches Historic Test World Championship Victory Over India (2019-21 Circle)
In sharp contrast to the surface on Saturday, Babar stated that the pitch on which Pakistan was placed to bat was the usual batting-friendly strip Rawalpindi is known for. However, Pakistan’s strategy for establishing a target was, at best, confused. Saim Ayub launched the team on his signature flyer, but New Zealand’s bowlers, namely Zak Foulkes, Ish Sodhi, and Will O’Rourke, kept finding ways to stifle Pakistan’s momentum with tight overs.
This was particularly true after Ayub was knocked out, and two balls after the powerplay finished, Babar and Mohammad Rizwan teamed up. As the momentum Pakistan had generated evaporated in the sixth and eleventh overs, New Zealand allowed just 36 runs, with Rizwan, in particular, failing to exploit the holes he so deftly finds in the powerplay.
Shortly after, he would leave with a hamstring injury, after captain Michael Bracewell had persuaded Babar to take a fake shot.
Pakistan wandered for a few more overs before Shadab Khan was sent in to give the innings direction. The run rate had dropped to 8.07 by now, but he started the innings with two boundaries off his opening four balls, which set the stage for an innings in which he hit 41 off 20 balls.
Pakistan started to blast their way back towards a competitive total alongside Irfan Niazi. Cruelly for New Zealand, perhaps, the biggest casualty of that explosive combination was Bracewell, whose overs had held Pakistan in check, as the two hammered his last over for 19 runs.
But once more, New Zealand prevailed, thanks to two tight last-overs from Jacob Duffy and Foulkes that kept Pakistan’s score below 180. Pakistan may have thought that their total was sufficient against a weaker New Zealand team, but in Twenty20 cricket, there are rarely many places to hide when you score less than your fair share.
