Pakistan vs New Zealand: Hosts saved by bad light in the first Test against Kiwis
Poor visibility ended a thrilling cricket match in the first Test on Friday, which ended in a draw. New Zealand threatened to snatch victory after Pakistan made a bold statement.
Pakistan vs New Zealand: Poor visibility ensured the match ended in a draw.Chasing a 138-run win in 15 overs, New Zealand were 61-1 in the eighth over of the second innings when the Test ended early due to poor light.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Updated <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/worldtestchampionship?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#worldtestchampionship</a> points table after <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Pakistan?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Pakistan</a> vs <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NewZealand?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NewZealand</a> 1st Test ends in a draw <a href="https://t.co/XaEM9wUgJY">https://t.co/XaEM9wUgJY</a></p>— CricketNDTV (@CricketNDTV) <a href="https://twitter.com/CricketNDTV/status/1608825200505925632?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 30, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
After tea, Pakistan's second innings resumed with a score of 249-7, giving them a 75-run lead, and Kiwi leg-spinner Ish Sodhi (6-86) appeared to be positioning his team for victory.
Left-hander Saud Shakeel made an unbeaten 55 and got plenty of support from tail-enders Mohammad Wasim (43) and Mir Hamza (3 not out). They did such a good job that Pakistan captain Babar Azam surprised the visitors and declared the match over at 311-8 late in the last session.
It was a tempting target for New Zealand, who had scored 612-9 in the first innings, and the visitors went for it.
When the lights came on, Tom Latham was still going strong at 35 and Devon Conway was still alive and well at 18. This may have prevented Pakistan from losing five straight Test matches.
Earlier, Pakistan's middle-order had surrendered to 206-7 in Sodhi's first five-for in a Test match and were only 32 runs ahead before Shakeel came to the rescue.
Pakistan were in deep trouble when Sodhi removed top-scorer Imam-ul-Haq for 96 runs an hour before tea to leave the tail exposed, but Wasim (43) and Shakeel defied the threat of spin from Sodhi, Michael Bracewell and Ajaz Patel with an aggressive stand of 71 runs at the eighth hole.
Sodhi revived the visitors' hopes when he caught Wasim's leg-before wicket with a flipper that bounced off the batsman's pads, and Pakistan extended their lead to 103. However, Hamza, playing his first Test match in four years, defended smartly before Babar declared the game over.
The second Test begins the following Monday at the same National Stadium after being shifted from Multan due to weather concerns.
Match Summary
Result - Draw
Pakistan first Innings: 438 all out
New Zealand First Innings: 612-9
Pakistan Second Innings: 316-8
New Zealand Second Innings: 61-1