PAK vs NZ, 3rd T20I: On January 16, Pakistan announced their playing 11 for the third T20 international match against New Zealand, which is scheduled to take place tomorrow at Dunedin’t University Oval on January 17. The decision to reveal their starting lineup a day before the game surprised many fans across the world, as teams generally do not announce their starting lineups one day before the match in white-ball games. The Pakistani team is currently behind by 0-2 in the five-match T20i series against New Zealand, having lost the first two games by 46 and 21 runs, respectively.
Young Seamer Abbas Afridi has been ruled out of the third T20 international due to a low-grade abdominal-wall-muscle strain. “Right-arm seamer Abbas Afridi has been ruled out of the third T20 International against New Zealand as he is experiencing some discomfort because of a low-grade abdominal wall muscle strain. His scan results have revealed no sign of a serious injury, and he will be managed symptomatically,” PCB said in a press release.
Young pacer Zaman Khan has replaced Abbas Afridi in the playing 11 for the third T20 International. He has featured in six T20 international games, and the 22-year-old has managed to pick up four wickets at an economy rate of 6.66.
Left Spin-Bowling All-rounder Mohammad Nawaz has replaced leg-spinner Usama Mir for the third T20 International against New Zealand. In the 57 T20 Internationals he has played, the 29-year-old has picked up 47 wickets at an economy rate of 7.32, while with the bat, he has scored 427 runs, with a not-out innings of 45 runs being his highest score in the shortest format.
The third and final alteration to Pakistan’s starting lineup is the addition of Mohammad Wasim Jr. in place of Aamer Jamal. In the 27 T20 Internationals, the 22-year-old Fast Bowling All-Rounder has been dismissed 35 times and has scored 45 runs with the bat, with 12* being his highest score in T20 Internationals.
Skipper Shaheen Shah Afridi (3 wickets) and Haris Rauf (5 wickets) have been the lone performers with the ball for Pakistan, while Babar Azam (123 runs) and Fakhar Zaman (65 runs) have performed well with the bat for the Men in Green in the five-match T20i series against New Zealand.
The Black Caps will be without the services of skipper Kane Williamson, who has been ruled out of the ongoing five-match T20i series against Pakistan due to a hamstring injury. Williamson will be replaced by wicketkeeper Tim Seifert in the playing 11 for the remaining T20 internationals, while Mitchell Santner or Tim Southee can lead the team in the absence of Kane Williamson.
Pakistan’s playing 11 for the 3rd T20I International
Saim Ayub, Mohammad Rizwan (vc), Babar Azam, Iftikhar Ahmed, Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Nawaz, Azam Khan (wk), Mohammad Wasim Jr, Shaheen Shah Afridi (C), Haris Rauf, and Zaman Khan
Read: Kane Williamson to miss the remaining three T20I’s against Pakistan
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