Match Details
Let’s quickly recap what’s happened in this Test match. Pakistan won the toss and opted to bat first and recovered well to post 438 all out after being 48/3 at one stage. It was skipper Babar Azam who led from the front with his majestic 161. Agha Salman scored 103 while keeper batter Sarfaraz Ahmed scored 86. Tim Southee was the pick of the bowlers with 3 wickets. 2 wickets apiece for Ajaz Patel, Michael Bracewell, and Ish Sodhi, and a wicket to Neil Wagner.
In reply, New Zealand got off to a terrific start courtesy of their openers Devon Conway and Tom Latham as they put on 183 for the first wicket. While Conway missed out on his century by 8 runs, Latham carried on to get to his century as he scored 113. But it was the Kane Williamson show as he notched up his 5th Test double ton and stayed unbeaten. He became the first Kiwi batter to get to 5 double tons, going past Brendon McCullum’s 4.
Ish Sodhi chipped in 65 as New Zealand declared their innings at the score of 612/9 declared. Abrar Ahmed and Nauman Ali bowled marathon spells and got 5 and 3 wickets respectively. For Abrar, it was his second five-wicket haul. Mohammad Wasim Junior got a wicket as well. The lead for New Zealand was 174.
Pakistan coming out to bat in their second innings with a deficit of 174, got off to a solid start thanks to Imam-ul-Haq who held the innings together for his 96. The top-order initially failed as they left Pakistan in a spot of bother. But Sarfaraz Ahmed gave impetus to the innings with his 53. Later on, Said Shakeel and Mohammad Wasim Junior performed under pressure with knocks of 55* and 43 respectively. Mir Hamza played his part as Pakistan did well to recover from 206/7 to get to 311/8 declared in 103.5 overs with 10 extras given by the fielding side.
Ish Sodhi was the pick of the bowlers for New Zealand with
figures of 6/86 in 36.5 overs. Michael Bracewell picked up the other two
wickets while the rest of the bowlers went wicketless. Neil Wagner hardly bowled while Southee and Ajaz Patel were ineffective, to say the least.
Chasing an improbable 138 runs to win in 15 overs, New Zealand gave a good account of themselves in the chase. Michael Bracewell promoted up the order and fell for 3 off 5 balls. Then the duo of Tom Latham and Devon Conway decided to have some fun out there. Conway was unbeaten on 18* off 16 balls while Latham was the aggressor with his 35 off 24 balls as he showed his array of shots. The Kiwis were 61/1in 7.3 overs when the light dimmed to an impossible level and forced the umpires to call off play.
Abrar Ahmed picked up the only wicket to fall as he and Nauman Ali were taken to the cleaners in this brief passage of play. The pacers Mohammad Wasim Junior and Mir Hamza kept it tight and made sure Pakistan hung on for a draw.
So, the match ends in a draw. Stay tuned for the post-match presentation ceremony that comes your way soon.