Pakistan and New Zealand will clash in the third and
the final game of the ODI series at the same ground in Abu Dhabi. And
with the series tied at one game apiece, it will be an interesting third game
in the offing.
The Pakistanis would have gone into the second match with a lot of confidence,
but Brendon McCullum's century would have deflated a lot of it. The subsequent
target of more than 300 was almost unachievable, but it must be said that the
Pakistanis made a better chase of it than the Kiwis who were plain mesmerised
to be playing and chasing a 288 in the first game.
Click for Live Score Card of Pakistan Vs New Zealand
For the third and the final game, there is a reasonable chance that both the
sides will go into the game without too many changes. In fact, Shoaib Malik's
inclusion was on expected lines, and despite feeling for Umar Akmal -
who is a talented youngster but was dropped - the lack of a viable back-up option
meant that Malik was a shoo-in. Therefore, it was surprising to see that he
did not bowl a single over, especially during the middle stages of the game
when the Kiwis were going great guns.
What was also surprising was to have Saeed Ajmal bowl two of the last
three overs, which is a mistake that the Pakistanis may not want to repeat.
Younus Khan also needs to look at his own batting position. For now, it is
difficult to believe that he is fit enough to be a number three for Pakistan,
and it will make much more sense for the likes of Mohammad Yousuf or Shoaib
Malik to be picked. It was a surprise that Malik was even dropped in the first
place, but now, the captain will need to find solutions to the batting, and
moreso if it is under pressure while batting second.
For the Kiwis, the return of Kyle Mills added that extra bit to their attack.
Ian Butler was the surprise exclusion as Tim Southee seems to be too inexperienced
to be playing such games. The Kiwis may have won today by a good enough margin,
but they have to thank their batsmen for that. This is given that Abdul Razzaq
bats at number eight for the Pakistanis and will prove to be a dangerous customer.
Jacob Oram, Scott Styris and Daniel Vettori combined well to stifle the Pakistani
chase, but it is certain that the opposition will go after Styris again. Vettori
will need to use the medium pacers rather smartly if they intend controlling
the run-rate.
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