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'Aisi jeet ka kya fayda' - Fans react as Pakistan avoid series whitewash by defeating New Zealand in 5th T20I

Here's how fans reacted after Pakistan defeated New Zealand in the 5th T20I of the series by 42 runs and saved themselves from getting whitewashed.

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Shaheen Afridi (Source - Twitter).png

Shaheen Afridi (Source - Twitter)

New Zealand and Pakistan clashed against each other in the 5th and final match of the 5-match T20I series at the Hagley Oval in Christchurch on Sunday, January 21. The Kiwis had already sealed the series with a magnificent lead of 4-0, however, they couldn’t whitewash the series as the Men in Green made a brilliant comeback in a dead rubber by defeating the Blackcaps by 42 runs.

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Talking about the match, Pakistan won the toss and opted to bat, however, they started horribly as they lost their opening batter Haseebullah Khan in the very first over without scoring a single run. Pakistan’s most experienced batters Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan then steadied the ship as they stitched a 53-run stand for the 2nd wicket but both were batting very slowly. 

Babar was dismissed by Ish Sodhi in the 10th over of the match on the score of 13 runs off 24 deliveries. Fakhar Zaman displayed some magnificent strokes while batting at no. 4 position and smashed 33 runs off just 16 balls which included 1 four and 4 sixes. The Men in Green couldn’t put many runs on the scoreboard and ended up scoring 134 runs after losing 8 wickets in 20 overs.

Tim Southee, Matt Henry, Lockie Ferguson and Sodhi all got 2 wickets each while being economical as well. Skipper Mitchell Santner went wicketless while conceding 30 runs in 4 overs. Rizwan was the highest run-scorer for Pakistan as he scored 38 runs off 38 deliveries which included 4 fours.

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Brilliant bowling display from Pakistani bowlers

Chasing the target, New Zealand's batters never looked settled in the middle as they were constantly losing wickets. Iftikhar Ahmed was the star with the ball for Pakistan as he picked up 3 wickets while conceding only 24 runs in 4 overs. He was also named Player of the Match for his brilliant bowling display.

Apart from Iftikhar, Mohammad Nawaz and skipper Shaheen Afridi also bowled brilliantly and picked up 2 wickets each for the team. The collective magnificent bowling performance by the Pakistani team helped them to save themselves from getting whitewashed as they registered a much-needed win in the final match of the series. However, New Zealand won the series 4-1 and Finn Alenn was named Player of the Series for his outstanding batting display throughout the series.

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Here's how fans reacted:

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