Pakistan’s white-ball tour of New Zealand began with the first of the five T20Is on March 16, 2025. The first match was played in Christchurch and saw the new-look visiting Men in Green team getting hammered by 9 wickets.
Pakistan sent a new look. The T20I team to New Zealand under the captaincy of Salman Ali Agha and the returning Shadab Khan was named vice-captain. Premier batters Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan were dropped from the shortest format for this T20I series.
However, their first move toward adopting an aggressive attitude in white-ball cricket occurred when they were dismissed for 91 runs, their fifth-lowest total in the format and a record-low score on New Zealand soil. New Zealand completed the chase in just 61 balls, taking a 1-0 lead in the five-match series.
Pakistan was destroyed by New Zealand's speed attack, being bowled out for 91 runs, with Khushdil Shah leading the way with 32 runs. For New Zealand, Jacob Duffy grabbed four wickets, Kyle Jamieson took three, and Ish Sodhi claimed two.
In response, Tim Seifert’s 44 and Finn Allen’s 29* led New Zealand to a 9-wicket win with 59 balls in hand.
Following the brutal hammering at the Hagley Oval in Christchurch, PCB's selection committee and the team were shamed on social media as fans showed no mercy.
Here are the posts:
