Published: Feb 19, 2025, 11:29 PM (IST)
Edited: Feb 19, 2025, 11:30 PM (IST)
Pakistan began their Champions Trophy campaign with a heavy 60-run defeat against New Zealand in Karachi on Wednesday. Chasing a humongous target of 321 was never going to be easy for the hosts and the slow start provided by openers Saud Shakeel Babar Azam only made things harder for the hosts.
In the first 10 overs, Pakistan scored just 22/2 with Babar on 12* (27b) and Mohammad Rizwan on 3* (14b). The run-rate only picked up when Salman Ali Agha came out to bat and played a decent knock of 42 runs from 28 deliveries.
Former India cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin took to his official X account and described Babar and Agha’s batting as ‘The Tortoise and Rabbit story’.
Babar was eventually dismissed by New Zealand skipper Mitchell Santner after scoring 64 runs from 90 deliveries. The sluggishness showed by Pakistan’s top-order ended up costing them big time as the Kiwis handed them a comprehensive 60-run defeat.
This is New Zealand’s fourth win against Pakistan in the Champions Trophy as they continued their record of never losing against the defending champions in the ICC tournament. Things are not looking good for the Men in Green as their next match against arch-rivals India will be a virtual knockout.
