In the first one-day international (ODI) of a five-match series at the Pindi Cricket Ground in Rawalpindi, Pakistan secured a convincing five-wicket victory over New Zealand on Thursday.
Team Pakistan did a great job with some brilliant performances and even a world record by Naseem Shah. Fakhar Zaman was the star of the match.
Fakhar Zaman scored his ninth ODI hundred, helping Pakistan chase down 289 runs in 48.3 overs. Imam-ul-haq scored a half century. Fakhar’s partnership with Imam-ul-Haq, who scored 60, laid the foundation for Pakistan’s victory. Babar Azam, the skipper, got out on 49, but Fakhar did not let his guard down and gave his impressive form to score the highest 117 runs for Pakistan.
Mohammad Rizwan scored 42 not-out to seal the win for Pakistan. For New Zealand, Adam Milne took two wickets. Blair Tickner, Ish Sodhi, and Rachin Ravindra, on the other hand, shared one wicket each.
In their innings, New Zealand posted a challenging total of 288-7 in 50 overs. Credit goes to Daryl Mitchell’s solid performance alongside Will Young. After losing their opener Chad Bowes early, New Zealand were 48-1, but the 102-run partnership between Mitchell and Young put Pakistani bowlers under pressure.
However, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, and Shadab Khan pulled off a decent performance with the ball. Pakistan held New Zealand back to a score of 288 runs. Despite New Zealand’s strong start, Pakistan’s impressive batting display, led by Fakhar, saw them secure a comfortable victory in the series opener.
![LAHORE: Sterling performances by Pakistan’s opening batter Fakhar Zaman helped him to attain the International Cricket Council Men’s Player of the Month award for April, cricket governing body announced on Tuesday. Fakhar smashed centuries in each of the opening two games of Pakistan’s five-match One-day International series against New Zealand. His 180 not out in the second match in Rawalpindi, following 117 in the first, helped Pakistan pull off their second-highest run chase. “He [Zaman] beat tough competition from Sri Lanka spin wizard Prabath Jayasuriya, and emerging New Zealand batter Mark Chapman,” an ICC news release stated. Fakhar said he was “truly honoured” to win the award. “This month has been one of the highlights of my career and it was an amazing feeling to play in front of my own people in Lahore, Rawalpindi and Karachi,” he was quoted as saying in the ICC news release. “I really enjoyed scoring back-to-back centuries in Rawalpindi, but my favourite was the 180 not out in the second match. I hope to continue the momentum leading into the World Cup, and make Pakistan fans happy and proud with my performances.”](https://www.thepaksports.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Fakhar-bags-ICC-player-of-the-month-award-100x70.jpg "Fakhar bags ICC player of the month award")
