Pakistan Lost the Top Spot in the ICC ODI Rankings
Pakistan Cricket topped the ICC ODI rankings for the first time by winning the fourth match of the series on Saturday. But Pakistan could not hold it for long. Pakistan lost the top spot in the ICC ODI rankings within 48 hours.
The host Pakistan could not whitewash New Zealand in the five-match ODI series. Pakistan lost by 47 runs to visiting New Zealand in the fifth and final match of the series. Meanwhile, Pakistan won the ODI series 4-1 after 12 years after losing the last match against New Zealand.
New Zealand won the toss and batted first in a mission to avoid a whitewash on Sunday (May 7) Bangladesh time in Karachi. Top-order Tom Blundell scored 15 and Henry Nicholls returned with 23 runs. After adding 51 runs with Nicholls for the second wicket, opener Will Young also put on a half-century partnership with captain Tom Latham for the third wicket.
Young scored 87 runs off 91 balls with 8 fours and 2 sixes before getting out. After Young’s return, Latham put on another half-century with Mark Chapman to take New Zealand past the 200. New Zealand gets a big score in this.
After Latham’s 59 off 58 balls and Chapman’s 43 off 33 balls, New Zealand’s next batsmen could not get any quick runs. New Zealand scored 52 runs after losing 5 wickets in the last 8 overs. The Kiwis were all out for 299 with 3 balls to spare. Shaheen Shah Afridi of Pakistan took 3 wickets, and Usama Mir-Shadab took 2 wickets each.
Pakistan could not get off to a good start in response to 300 runs. They were under pressure after losing 4 wickets for 66 runs. Shan Masood 7, captain Babar Azam 1, wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan 9, and Fakhar Zaman scored 33 runs. Iftikhar Ahmed and Agha Salman put Pakistan back in the fight by making a pair of 97 runs off 95 balls for the fourth wicket.
Pacer Henry Shipley gave New Zealand a breakthrough after hunting Salman, who scored 57 runs in 57 balls with 6 fours and 1 six. Iftikhar could not form a big partnership with the batsmen in the next over after Salman’s departure for the team’s 163 runs. Iftikhar fought at one end but no one could give him proper support at the other end.
Pakistan’s innings ended with 252 runs in 46.1 overs. Even though the team’s innings ended, Iftikhar remained unbeaten with 94 runs from 72 balls. Shipley-Rabindra of New Zealand took 3 wickets each. Shipley was the man of the match. And Pakistan’s Fakhr Zaman became the best of the series.
At this rate, Pakistan has fallen to third place with a 112 rating in the ICC ODI ranking. Australia has returned to the top with a rating of 113. India is second behind in terms of fractions with a rating of 113.
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