After their historic victory over India on Sunday that broke their World Cup jinx against their neighbours and arch-rivals, Pakistan gear up for another historic contest on Tuesday when they take on New Zealand in their second game of the T20 World Cup.
For New Zealand, who had reached the semis in the last edition of the tournament five years earlier before losing to England, this will be their first match of their campaign. They had earlier lost both their warmup matches against Australia and England, but are nevertheless a force to be reckoned with and are counted among the sides likely to finish among the last four.
The Black Caps, however, will be up against an emotionally-charged and upbeat Pakistan side on Tuesday, a side that enters the mega event carrying with them the disappointment and frustration of the pullouts staged by New Zealand and England from their scheduled tours of Pakistan.
New Zealand had arrived in Pakistan for the first time since 2003, but their limited-overs tour came to an abrupt end just minutes before the start of the first one-day international in Rawalpindi, with their security officials citing a threat though they never quite disclosed the details.
England, who were supposed to send their men’s and women’s team just before the T20 World Cup, followed suit not long after, though they cited player workload as their reason instead of security concerns.
Having already beaten India, Pakistan will now hope to channel their frustration and anger caused by the last-minute cancellations into their performance on the field, and will hope to maintain the same clinical approach that helped them thrash the Men in Blue by 10 wickets on on Sunday.
Here’s everything you need to know about the upcoming match:
When will the Group 2 match of the T20 World Cup 2021 between Pakistan and New Zealand take place?
The match between Pakistan and New Zealand will take place on 26 October 2021.
What is the venue for the Pakistan vs New Zealand match?
The match will take place at the Sharjah International Cricket Stadium in Sharjah.
What time will the Pakistan vs New Zealand match start?
The match will begin at 7.30 pm IST. The toss will take place at 7 pm IST.
Which TV channels will broadcast the Pakistan vs New Zealand match
The match will be telecast on the Star Sports Network. The live streaming of the match will also be available on Disney+ Hotstar. Besides, you can browse Firstpost.com for live updates and over-by-over commentary.
Squads:
Pakistan: Babar Azam (c), Shadab Khan (vice-capt), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Asif Ali, Sohaib Maqsood, Azam Khan (wk), Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Junior, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Hasnain
New Zealand: Kane Williamson (c), Martin Guptill, Mark Chapman, James Neesham, Todd Astle, Daryl Mitchell, Mitchell Santner, Devon Conway, Glenn Phillips, Tim Seifert, Trent Boult, Lockie Ferguson, Kyle Jamieson, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee,