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New Zealand asserted their dominance in the T20I series against Pakistan with a series win on Wednesday, securing victory with two matches still to be played, courtesy of a record-breaking performance by opener Finn Allen. The BlackCaps posted a mammoth total of 224/7 after opting to bat in the third T20I in Dunedin and restricted Pakistan to 179/7 to clinch the series. This triumph followed earlier victories in the series by 46 and 21 runs, respectively.
Finn Allen emerged as the standout performer, building on his impressive display in the previous match, scoring 74 off 41 balls. In the third game, Allen’s explosive innings featured a remarkable 137 off 62 balls, setting a new Kiwi record. His swashbuckling approach saw him a world record-equalling hitting 16 sixes and five fours. Meanwhile, Pakistan proved expensive with the ball again as their leading pacer, Haris Rauf, conceded 60 off his four overs, while captain Shaheen Afridi conceded 43.
With the bat, Babar Azam was again the leading run-scorer for the side with 58 off 37 balls but continued running out of partners at the other end. Captain Afridi spoke in detail about Babar’s performances in the series and stated that the batting unit failed to support the former Pakistan skipper, which denied Babar a chance to finish the matches.
“I had also said earlier that Babar was not out of form. We cannot judge him based on a few innings. He has played three fine innings in three matches in the series. He could not finish the matches in our favour. He needed someone at the other end to take the innings deeper. If there was another batter at the other end with Babar, we could have finished the game in our favour,” said Afridi in the post-match press conference.
Babar is currently the highest scorer for Pakistan in the series, with 181 runs in three matches at an impressive strike rate of 157.39. The former Pakistan skipper is batting at no.3 position in the order — a change from many of his previous outings in T20Is where he batted as an opener.
Pakistan play New Zealand in their fourth T20I at the Hagley Oval in Christchurch.
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