SHARJAH, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Pakistan won the toss and elected to field against New Zealand in a T20 World Cup Group 2 match on Tuesday.
New Zealand suffered a huge blow before the game when fast bowler Lockie Ferguson was ruled out of the tournament with a torn calf. Captain Kane Williamson said the Black Caps will wait for ICC approval before drafting in Adam Milne as a replacement.
The Kiwis went into their opening game with two specialist spinners, Ish Sodhi and Mitchell Santner.
New Zealand left Pakistan cricket fans and administrators fuming last month when it decided to abandon a limited-overs tour because of security worries just minutes before the first ODI was due to start in Rawalpindi.
Williamson, though, said his team’s relationship with the Pakistan players was still good.
Pakistan kept the same team that crushed India by 10 wickets, ending a jinx of 12 defeats in a row against its archrival in World Cups.
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Teams:
New Zealand: Martin Guptill, Devon Conway, Glenn Phillips, Kane Williamson (captain), Tim Seifert, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Trent Boult, Ish Sodhi.
Pakistan: Babar Azam (captain), Mohammad Rizwan, Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Asif Ali, Imad Wasim, Shadab Khan, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf.
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