In the third Twenty20 International of the five-match series, Pakistan defeated New Zealand by nine wickets on Friday at Eden Park in Auckland thanks to an undefeated innings of 105 runs by Hasan Nawaz.

With openers Mohammad Haris and Nawaz forming a solid opening partnership, the team got off to a great start.

Salman Ali Agha joined Nawaz after Haris was down for 41, and the two of them brilliantly reached the enormous goal of 205 runs in 16 overs.

Earlier, Mark Champan scored 94 runs in an innings while hitting 15 boundaries as the Kiwis set a target of 205.

After the opening pair was dominated by the Pakistani pacers Haris Rauf and Shaheen Afridi, the innings helped his team recover from early defeats.

With 17 runs from Daryl Mitchell and 31 from Michael Bracewell, their team set a lofty goal for the visitors.

Shaheen Afridi and Abrar Ahmed both collected two wickets, while Harif Rauf took three.

After winning the first two games handily, the hosts now have a 2-0 series advantage.

Against a disheartened Pakistan, the Kiwis hope to grab an unstoppable lead in the T20 International series. Pakistan, who are behind 2-0 in the five-match series and have lost five of their past five T20 matches, were vulnerable despite several first-choice players being unavailable because of Indian Premier League (IPL) engagements.

“The flying” Glenn Phillips, who has gained attention for making unimaginable catches, will be missed by New Zealand. It’s interesting to note that in the two games played thus far, Pakistani batsmen have given out catches: eight out of nine in the second game and all ten in the first.

On the other hand, Pakistan is a diminished team because they are without Saim Ayub due to injury, Babar Azam, and Muhammad Rizwan in this format. The pace and bounce of the New Zealand pitches have been too much for Hasan Nawaz and Muhammad Haris, the new opening duo.

In order to win the current series and put together a winning lineup for the upcoming World Cup, which is less than a year away, Pakistan must perform better than ever before.

Two changes are expected in the lineup of the Pakistan team as it would try to avoid the series loss in today’s match.

On Tuesday, New Zealand beat Pakistan by five wickets at the University Oval in Dunedin to go 2-0 up in the five-match T20I series.

In a rain-shortened match which was reduced to 15 overs a side, Pakistan after being put into bat for the second successive time in the series managed to score 135 for nine courtesy a 28-ball 46 from captain Salman Ali Agha. The right-hand batter innings included four fours and three sixes.

Shadab Khan (26, 14b, 2x4s, 2x6s) and Shaheen Shah Afridi (22 not out, 14b, 2x4s, 1×6) were the other significant run-getters for the touring side. For the hosts, Ben Sears, Ish Sodhi, Jacob Duffy and James Neesham bagged two wickets apiece.

In turn, New Zealand achieved the target in 13.1 overs, losing five wickets in the process. Opening batters Tim Seifert (45, 22b, 3x4s, 5x6s) and Finn Allen (38, 16b, 1×4, 5x6s) provided a brisk 66-run first-wicket stand.

For Pakistan, Haris Rauf was the most successful bowler, clinching two wickets for 20 in three overs.

TEAMS

New Zealand (probable): 1 Tim Seifert, 2 Finn Allen, 3 Mark Chapman, 4 Daryl Mitchell, 5 James Neesham, 6 Mitchell Hay (wk), 7 Michael Bracewell (capt), 8 Zakary Foulkes, 9 Ish Sodhi, 10 Kyle Jamieson, 11 Jacob Duffy/Ben Sears

Pakistan (probable): 1 Mohammad Haris (wk), 2 Hasan Nawaz, 3 Salman Agha (capt), 4 Irfan Khan, 5 Shadab Khan, 6 Khushdil Shah, 7 Abdul Samad, 8 Jahandad Khan, 9 Shaheen Afridi, 10 Abrar Ahmed, 11 Mohammad Ali