ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will be eyeing a whitewash over New Zealand on Sunday as the two sides lock horns at the National Bank Arena stadium in the southern port city of Karachi, for the fifth match of the bilateral ODI series.
New Zealand captain Tom Latham won the toss and elected to bat first against Pakistan. "NZ have won the toss and elected to bat," the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said in a statement.
Pakistan, who won the fourth ODI against the Kiwis by an emphatic 102 runs on Friday, are already leading 4-0 in the series. After cruising to a win against New Zealand on Friday, the green shirts became the world's top-ranked ODI squad, a feat Pakistan had not achieved previously.
Pakistan's all-format captain Babar Azam will be playing his 100th ODI match today. The prolific batter became the fastest cricketer to score 5,000 ODI runs in his last match when he smashed an impressive 107-run knock against the Black Caps.
Azam beat South African Hashim Amla’s record when he took a single to reach 19 during Pakistan’s innings after they were sent to bat first by New Zealand.
A 5-0 win over New Zealand in today’s match would also be a big boost for Pakistan ahead of the 50-over World Cup, which is scheduled to take place later this year in India.
Squads:
New Zealand XI: Will Young, Tom Blundell (wk), Henry Nicholls, Tom Latham (c), Mark Chapman, Cole McConchie, Rachin Ravindra, Adam Milne, Henry Shipley, Ish Sodhi, Matt Henry
Pakistan XI: Shan Masood, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Iftikhar Ahmed, Salman Agha, Shadab Khan, Usama Mir, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Wasim, Haris Rauf