New Zealand underlined their Champions Trophy aspirations with a 60-run victory against defending cricket champions and hosts Pakistan in their Group A match at the National Stadium in Karachi, Pakistan.
Will Young struck 107 and Tom Latham smashed an unbeaten 118 to help New Zealand overcome a sluggish start on Wednesday and post a commanding 320-5 after being put into bat.
Glenn Phillips chipped in with a brisk 61 as New Zealand breached the 300 mark, which had looked like a distant dream after their wobbly start.
Pakistan were all out for 260 in 47.2 overs with Babar Azam (64) and Khushdil Shah (69) scoring half-centuries, but the hosts never looked in the hunt.
“The way Young and Latham rotated the strike and got the odd boundary really set us up,” New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner said.
“We were thinking 260-280, but it shows what you can do if you have a platform and wickets in hand. After the score we got, the first 10 overs with the ball were outstanding.”
Santner and Will O’Rourke both claimed three wickets for the Kiwis while even a cameo from Pakistan number seven Khushdil Shah, with 69 off 49, came too late after the hosts struggled with a sluggish start.
Fakhar Zaman was injured early in the first innings and had to be replaced in the field.
As a result, the opening batter wasn’t allowed to rejoin the match until his side were two down in the chase.
It severely hampered the hosts, who were 22-2 at the end of the power play.
Losing Pakistan skipper Mohammad Rizwan said his side were confident when inserting New Zealand at the toss. “They made a very good target,” he said. “We didn’t expect they would get 320. We thought around 260 when we took early wickets.
“The pitch was not easy to bat early on, but Young and Latham’s innings were crucial. Our execution in the end overs was not good, and that’s why they made that score.”
It was a third straight defeat on home soil for Pakistan in one-day internationals against New Zealand, and now heaps pressure on their second match in the group against India on Sunday.
Rohit Sharma’s India, who are favourites for the tournament, open their account against Bangladesh on Thursday.
