Babar Azam:
As you know, we wanted to get a result as I said at the toss and we went for the declaration. But the light was not good enough, so (it ended in a draw). (On thinking of a different option for the fifth bowler for the next Test) Our fifth bowler is Salman Agha, he wasn’t been feeling well. We missed him with the ball. So, I think our five-bowlers attack is good. Wasim and Saud brought us back in the match. Credit to them for playing positive cricket. Saud played a mature inning and we look forward to him playing in the future.
Tim Southee:
I wouldn’t say chances slipped away. We had to hang in and take chances. To have lost the toss and have had a chance was pleasing. Late in the third innings, they played nicely. There was a bit of assistance if bowled in the right areas. But a couple of good innings took the game to safety for them. Tremendous comeback from Ish Sodhi. He can be extremely proud of his return to Test cricket. Kane showed his class and what he’s capable of in these conditions. (On captaincy) Not too different from what we usually do.
Kane Williamson is the POTM for his 200*:
It was a fantastic opening stand that set the tone and was important. I came in and looked to get used to the pace. It was nice to build a lot of partnerships. (On prep against Abrar) They are well-equipped world-class bowlers. We tried to stick to the plans. It was a good batting surface but nice to see the rough which challenged batters. Well played by Imam who took them to a draw. Still had chats with Tim, great game of cricket. Old school, pretty quick turnaround and we’ll be back on it. (On rating the double among others) I don’t think about it too much. It’s about contributing to the team. It was a nice team performance.
Pakistan vs New Zealand Highlights today. 1st Test, National Stadium, Karachi, Friday 30-12-2022, New Zealand tour of Pakistan 2022.
Pakistan, elected to bat first.
Pakistan team: 1 Imam-ul-Haq, 2 Abdullah Shafique, 3 Shan Masood, 4 Babar Azam (capt), 5 Saud Shakeel, 6 Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), 7 Agha Salman, 8 Nauman Ali, 9 Mohammad Wasim, 10 Mir Hamza, 11 Abrar Ahmed
New Zealand team: 1 Tom Latham, 2 Devon Conway, 3 Kane Williamson, 4 Henry Nicholls, 5 Daryl Mitchell, 6 Tom Blundell (wk), 7 Michael Bracewell, 8 Tim Southee (capt), 9 Ish Sodhi, 10 Neil Wagner, 11 Ajaz Patel
Head to Head In Test’s: 60
Pakistan Won: 25
New Zealand Won: 15
Pakistan Test Rankings: 6th
New Zealand Test Rankings: 5th
Form guide
(Last five completed matches, most recent first)
Pakistan LLLLW
New Zealand LLLLW
Match Timings: 5:00 AM GMT | 10:00 AM Local
Umpires – Aleem Dar, Alex Wharf
TV Umpire – Ahsan Raza
Match Referee – Muhammad Javed
Reserve Umpire – Asif Yaqoob
Match number – Test no. 2486
