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Champions Trophy : Latham and Young's centuries lead New Zealand to a big win
Latham and Young's centuries lead New Zealand to a big win
Two century partnerships in the New Zealand innings, with Young and Latham's hundreds. While Glenn Phillips scored 61 off 39 balls.
After almost three decades Pakistan has been able to host any Tournament but the happiness didn’t stand for so long as on the opening day New Zealand gave the host a total loss of 60 runs in Karachi. In a quick tournament with only three group-stage games for each team, a loss like this could hurt Pakistan's chances of reaching the semi-finals. Will Young and Tom Latham led their team to victory by scoring impressive centuries, which helped secure their dominant win, but they also had a bit of luck on their side.
Just after the two balls in the game, Fakhar Zaman caught up with an injury at the time of chasing the cover drive from Young and was compelled to rest for the entire first innings. Because Fakhar had spent time off the field, he couldn't start the batting for Pakistan's chase of 321 runs. When he finally came in to bat at No. 4, with Pakistan at 22 for 2 in ten overs, he struggled to run between the wickets. New Zealand's offspinners, Michael Bracewell and Glenn Phillips, kept bowling the ball out of his reach, making it harder for him. Fakhar's difficult time at the crease ended when Bracewell bowled him out for 24 runs off 41 balls with a ball that didn't spin.
Much like Fakhar, most of the Pakistan batters struggled, including Babar Azam, who took 81 balls to score his fifty. Despite injuries to Lockie Ferguson and Ben Sears, New Zealand's spinners capitalized on a pitch that offered turn and variable bounce. The spinners performed so well that New Zealand didn't need their third seamer, Nathan Smith, until the 31st over. By then, Pakistan's required run rate had nearly reached ten runs per over.
New Zealand also faced challenges due to Rachin Ravindra's absence, but Young and Latham's centuries set the tone, and Glenn Phillips finished strongly. In total, New Zealand scored 113 runs in the last ten overs, reaching a final total of 320.
New Zealand's total seemed distant when they were at 40 for 2 in the ninth over and 73 for 3 in the 17th over. However, Young and Latham joined forces to recover from the early setbacks and dominate the middle overs.
Young has often been on the sidelines in his international career. He might not have played this game if Ravindra was fit, and despite scoring his first international hundred away from home, he may step aside once Ravindra recovers. During Kane Williamson's absence, Young was the Player of the Series in New Zealand's historic 3-0 win over India but was dropped for Williamson in the next Test against England at home. Nevertheless, Young is always ready to seize his opportunities, as he showed on Wednesday.
After Devon Conway was dismissed by a carrom ball from Abrar Ahmed for 10 and Williamson fell for his first single-digit ODI score in six years, Young steadied himself and faced challenging spells from Abrar and Naseem Shah.
Young scored his third fifty-plus in nine innings in Pakistan and turned it into a century, reaching it in 107 balls in the 35th over, with Ravindra applauding from the dressing room.
Latham, on the other hand, scored a hundred in 95 balls and stayed unbeaten on 118 off 104 balls. This was a remarkable turnaround for him, coming off three ducks in a row since the Auckland ODI against Sri Lanka in January. Despite being given multiple chances during his 56 in the tri-series final against Pakistan, Latham showcased his full range of shots, including various sweeps to unsettle Pakistan's spinners. Fifty-two of his 118 runs were scored square or behind square on the leg side.
After Young was dismissed for 107, Latham and Phillips built a 125-run partnership for the fifth wicket in just 74 balls. Phillips, who was initially at 10 off 18 balls, quickly accelerated to his fifty in the next 16 balls. He hit consecutive sixes off Shaheen and then attempted to ramp Haris Rauf over short third but ended up getting out for 61 off 39 balls.
Phillips continued to make an impact by pulling off a stunning catch to dismiss Mohammad Rizwan for 3 off 14 balls on the last ball of the first powerplay. Will O'Rourke had already taken out Saud Shakeel, the makeshift opener replacing Fakhar, for 6 in the fourth over. Matt Henry, who missed the tri-series final due to a knee issue, also bowled tightly in the first powerplay, restricting Pakistan to 22 for 2.
This was Pakistan's lowest score in the first ten overs since March 2019 and the third lowest in Champions Trophy history. Despite some late efforts from Khushdil Shah, who scored 69 off 49 balls, and the lower order, Pakistan was ultimately bowled out for 260 in the 48th over.
In his first global event match as New Zealand captain, Santner took three wickets, although he was hit around towards the end. For the third time in two weeks, New Zealand defeated Pakistan with ruthless efficiency, solidifying their status as title contenders.
New Zealand 320 for 5 (Latham 118*, Young 107, Phillips 61, Naseem 2-63) beat Pakistan 260 (Khushdil 69, Babar 64, O'Rourke 3-47, Santner 3-66) by 60 runs.
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