Pakistan defeated New Zealand by five wickets at Hagley Oval, bringing the tri-series to a close with many players from the participating teams putting in outstanding performances in the seven-match tournament.
The three-nation tournament provided an excellent opportunity for all participants to prepare for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2022, given the conditions in New Zealand are similar to those in Australia.
Despite the fact that the pitches were not batting-friendly, many batters managed to present fans with memorable innings, and the likes of Conway, Babar Azam, and Mohammad Rizwan continued to do well for their teams.
Here are the leading run-scorers in the tri-series:
| Player | Team | Inns | Runs | HS | Ave | SR | 100s | 50s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DP Conway | New Zealand | 5 | 233 | 70* | 77.66 | 123.28 | 0 | 2 |
| Mohammad Rizwan | Pakistan | 5 | 201 | 78* | 50.25 | 122.56 | 0 | 2 |
| Babar Azam | Pakistan | 5 | 192 | 79* | 48.00 | 123.87 | 0 | 2 |
Despite the absence of a key pacer, Pakistan’s bowling unit has been brilliant since the Asia Cup, troubling opponents even on batting-friendly wickets and defending below-par targets.
The top two wicket-takers are both New Zealand bowlers, with Michael Bracewell and Tim Southee getting eight wickets each while Pakistan’s Wasim Jnr. and Haris Rauf also remained consistent performers, taking seven and six wickets, respectively.
Here are the top bowling performers:
| Player | Team | Inns | Overs | Runs | Wkts | BBI | Ave | Econ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MG Bracewell | New Zealand | 5 | 17.0 | 84 | 8 | 2/11 | 10.50 | 4.94 |
| TG Southee | New Zealand | 5 | 20.0 | 158 | 8 | 2/31 | 19.75 | 7.90 |
| Mohammad Wasim | Pakistan | 5 | 18.0 | 133 | 7 | 3/24 | 19.00 | 7.38 |
| Haris Rauf | Pakistan | 3 | 12.0 | 88 | 6 | 3/28 | 14.66 | 7.33 |
| Mohammad Nawaz | Pakistan | 5 | 19.0 | 167 | 6 | 2/25 | 27.83 | 8.78 |
| Naseem Shah | Pakistan | 3 | 11.1 | 83 | 4 | 2/27 | 20.75 | 7.43 |
The number of sixes again caught the attention of cricket fans as only one Pakistani batter made his way into the top five six-hitters in the competition. All-rounder Mohammad Nawaz smashed five sixes in as many innings.
| Sr | Player | Team | 6s | Inn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Finn Allen | New Zealand | 9 | 5 |
| 2 | Glenn Phillips | New Zealand | 8 | 4 |
| 3 | Devon Conway | New Zealand | 6 | 5 |
| 4 | Mohammad Nawaz | Pakistan | 5 | 5 |
| 5 | Liton Das | Bangladesh | 4 | 4 |