1st ODI, at Karachi: New Zealand 255-9 (Michael Bracewell 43, Tom Latham 42, Glenn Phillips 37, Daryl Mitchell 36; Naseem Shah 5-57) lost to Pakistan 258-4 in 48.1 overs (Mohammad Rizwan 77no, Babar Azam 66, Fakhar Zaman 56; Bracewell 2-44) by six wickets.
The old firm of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan guided Pakistan to a six-wicket win over New Zealand in their opening match of the ODI series.
Batting at No.3, Babar made 66 from 82 balls before being stumped down the leg-side by Tom Latham off the part-time off-spin of Glenn Phillips to offer a glimpse of hope for the tourists.
But No.4 Rizwan – who was dropped by Latham on 31 the ball befor Babar’s dismissal – kept the hosts on track with an unbeaten 77 from 86 deliveries despite suffering from cramp late to end as Pakistan got home with 11 balls to spare.
Batting first after being sent in by Babar, New Zealand struggled for momentum throughout their 50 overs, ending on 255-9.
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The tourists had seven players score more than 20, but the individual top score was just 43 from Michael Bracewell.
Black Caps skipper Kane Williamson admitted his side were a little short of what was required with the bat.
Fareed Khan/AP
New Zealand’s Devon Conway is bowled out by Pakistan’s Naseem Shah during the first one-day international in Karachi.
“We would have liked a few more [runs] – Pakistan were very clinical with the ball.
”Having said that, it was competitive enough if we got things right in that second half.”
Right-arm pace bowler Naseem Shah took 5-57 for the hosts, but the tone of New Zealand’s innings was dictated by spin bowlers Usama Mir and Mohammad Nawaz.
Pakistan’s two specialist slow bowlers conceded just 80 runs of their 20 combined overs while taking three wickets, with debutant legspinner Mir grabbing the prized scalp of Kane Williamson for his first ODI wicket.
Black Caps opener Devon Conway made his second consecutive golden duck, following on from his dismissal in the second innings of the second test at the same venue.
The left-hander tried to flick a delivery off his pads to the boundary, only to miss it and have it rebound off his pad into the stumps off the last ball of the first over of the match from Shah.
Fellow opener Finn Allen looked dangerous when hammering six fours in the space of eight balls, but perished to a sharp diving catch from Agha Salman off Mohammad Wasim in his first over.
Williamson’s 39-ball stay ended on 26 when he was bowled by a beauty from Mir, which drifted in the air and pitched on middle and leg before turning to beat Williamson’s bat and hit the top of middle.
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Pakistan’s Naseem Shah, centre, took five wickets for the hosts in Karachi.
A run of 54 balls without a boundary led to Daryl Mitchell’s dismissal as New Zealand were unable to pick up the pace during the middle of the innings and even the normally dynamic Phillips was subdued, striking just two boundaries in his 37 from 53 balls.
Bracewell, batting at No.7, contributed 43 from 42 balls, with four fours and a six before falling in the 46th over.
He also featured with the ball, making the initial breakthrough to remove Imam-ul-Haq in the sixth over.
But New Zealand were punished for not employing a slip for Lockie Ferguson, whose pace occasionally troubled the batters despite the sticky surface, when Fakhar Zaman edged him through the vacant space when on 29 in the 10th over.
Fakhar had another escape when dropped by wicketkeeper Tom Latham off Bracewell on 39, before the opener eventually fell to the offspinner for 56 when missing an ungainly heave.
Black Caps debutant Henry Shipley made a golden duck with the bat before bowling six tidy overs without a wicket.
Big moment
Babar seemed a goner when given lbw to Santner when on 24 in the 16th over of his side’s chase.
The skipper looked plumb and his request for a review appeared overly optimistic, but he got the reprieve he was seeking when the DRS ball-tracking system indicated the ball would have missed leg stump, much to Santner’s amazement.
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Pakistan captain Babar Azam made 66 from 82 balls.
Best with the bat
Babar’s new year in ODIs simply followed on from his phenomenal form in 2022.
The right-hander made three centuries and five fifties in nine one-dayers last year, tallying 679 runs and averaging 84.87. He struck five fours and a six from 82 balls to keep the score ticking over against NZ’s spinners when the visitors struggled to do so at the same stage.
Best with the ball
Naseem Shah now has two five-wicket bags in ODIs before turning 20.
The 19-year-old set New Zealand back in the first over by removing Conway before halting any planned late charge by the visitors with four wickets in the last seven overs of the innings.
Big picture
The three-match series is effectively an opportunity for both teams to fine-tune their games – and for coaches and selectors to trial players – with the World Cup in India in October the big goal. Game two starts at the same venue on Wednesday night (NZ time).
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