Sydney,
The ongoing 8th 20-over cricket festival in Australia is nearing its end. At the end of the Super 12 round, New Zealand (7 points) and England (7 points) who took the top two positions in Group 1, India (8 points) and Pakistan (6 points) who took the top 2 positions in Group 2 advanced to the semi-finals. Defending champions Australia, who were placed in Group 1, had to drop out after scoring 7 points but trailing in run rate.
Meanwhile, the Kane Williamson-led New Zealand team will face Babar Azam-led Pakistan in the first semi-final match in Sydney today (Wednesday).
New Zealand, who beat Australia, Sri Lanka and Ireland in the Super 12 round, lost only to England. The match against Afghanistan was abandoned due to rain. For New Zealand, who have yet to win a T20 World Cup, today’s game is the first step towards achieving that dream.
At the same time, the former champion Pakistan team recovered from the slump after defeating India and Zimbabwe in succession and then defeating the Netherlands, South Africa and Bangladesh. Pakistan’s luck in the semi-finals was the result of the Dutch team defeating South Africa in their last league match.
Pakistan defeated New Zealand by 5 wickets in the final of the tri-20 over series in New Zealand last month. That victory will give Pakistan immense confidence. All in all, the two teams are almost evenly matched, so it can be expected that the field will be heated.
Pakistan and New Zealand teams have faced each other in 28 matches in 20 over cricket. Of these, New Zealand has won 11 and Pakistan has won 17.
The proposed list of both the teams for today’s match is as follows:-
New Zealand: Ben Allen, Dewan Conway, Williamson (capt), Glenn Phillips, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Trent Boult, Sodhi, Lockie Ferguson.
Pakistan: Mohammad Rizwan, Babar Azam (Captain), Mohammad Harris, Shan Masood, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Shatab Khan, Mohammad Wasim, Naseem Shah, Shakeen Shah Afridi, Harris Raub.