Chapman's Century Propels Black Caps to Victory Over Pakistan
A scorching partnership of nearly two hundred runs aided the revamped Black Caps team as they convincingly beat Pakistan in the first One Day International in Napier by 73 runs.
Batting first, the Black Caps amassed 344/9 runs at McLean Park thanks to an unprecedented 199-run stand between Mark Chapman and Daryl Mitchell, with Chapman scoring an impressive 132.
Although they appeared menacing at points throughout the pursuit, a nightmarish lower-order collapse of six wickets for just 22 runs handed New Zealand a comfortable victory to kick off the series.
Chapman and Mitchell initially faced challenges but later joined forces to regain control effectively after being down to 50/3.
Chapman went on to notch his highest ODI score of 132, with Mitchell adding 75 runs.
Rookie Muhammad Abbas sealed the innings with a dazzling half-century off only 26 deliveries, staying until the final ball of the action-packed fifty-over match in Napier.
Pakistan had scored 83 runs when they lost their opening wicket; Usman Khan was dismissed by Nathan Smith’s bowling after making a rapid-fire 39.
The captain of New Zealand took out his opening partner shortly after when Abdullah Shafique was dismissed for 36 runs, thus uniting Pakistan’s top two batsmen.
Mohammad Rizwan was the third Pakistani player to be out for under thirty runs, edging the ball to the keeper to hand Abbas his inaugural international wicket.
As the target came into view, Will O'Rourke claimed the important wicket of Babar Azam for 78, putting the opposition needing 96 more runs with six wickets remaining.
Given Salman Agha required his bowlers' assistance at the other end, they failed to meet expectations; the lower order managed scores of 1, 0, 0, 1, 1, while Nathan Smith concluded with bowling statistics of 4/60.
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