New Zealand cricket team in Pakistan in 1996–97
New Zealand cricket team in Pakistan in 1996–97 | |||
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New Zealand | Pakistan | ||
Dates | November 1996 – December 1996 | ||
Captains | Lee Germon | Saeed Anwar | |
Test series | |||
Result | 2-match series drawn 1–1 | ||
Most runs | Stephen Fleming (182) | Saeed Anwar (157) | |
Most wickets | Simon Doull (10) | Mushtaq Ahmed (18) | |
Player of the series | Stephen Fleming (NZ) and Saeed Anwar (Pak) | ||
One Day International series | |||
Results | Pakistan won the 3-match series 2–1 | ||
Most runs | Stephen Fleming (172) | Zahoor Elahi (142) | |
Most wickets | Chris Harris (8) | Saqlain Mushtaq (7) | |
Player of the series | Stephen Fleming (NZ) and Saeed Anwar (Pak) |
The New Zealand national cricket team toured Pakistan during the 1996–97 cricket season. The tour consisted of a first-class game against an invitational Pakistani Cricket board XI, followed by two Test matches and three One Day International games. The hosts and tourists shared honours in the Test series, drawing 1–1, though New Zealand won with only a narrow 44-run margin in the first Test, and lost the second by an innings and ten runs.[1] New Zealand's Stephen Fleming enjoyed a successful series with the bat, scoring 182 runs at 60.66 in the Test series and 172 runs at 86.00 in the ODI matches, though the rest of the New Zealand batting line-up were said by the New Zealand press to have let the side down with the bat during the Test matches.[2] Nathan Astle, questioned over his place during the tour, redeemed himself with a half century in the final ODI match to alleviate heavy media pressure.[3]
Three Pakistan batsmen –
Background
New Zealand faced several problems on the eve of their 1996–97 tour of Pakistan. Initially, over questions of safety, the New Zealand Cricket Board considered cancelling the tour in light of the removal of Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and the resulting political fallout.
The touring side warmed up with an engagement against the Pakistan Cricket Board XI over 17, 18 and 19 November at the
Of greater concern was
Tour match
First-class: Pakistan Cricket Board XI v New Zealand
17–19 November 1996
Scorecard |
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171 (69.4 overs)
Mohammad Zahid 6/54 (19.3 overs) |
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41/0 (15 overs)
Zahoor Elahi 23* |
- New Zealand won the toss and elected to bat.
Test series
1st Test
21–25 November 1996
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231 (71.1 overs)
Dipak Patel 4/36 (15.1 overs) |
- New Zealand won the toss and elected to bat.
- Mohammad Wasim and Zahoor Elahi(both Pak) made their Test debuts.
At the
2nd Test
28 November–2 December 1996
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168 (58 overs)
Mohammad Zahid 7/66 (20 overs) |
- Pakistan won the toss and elected to field.
- Mohammad Zahid(Pak) made his Test debut.
- Mohammad Zahid is the first Pakistani cricketer to take 10 wickets on Test debut.
One down in the series, Pakistan faced New Zealand at the
ODI series
1st ODI
4 December 1996
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- Pakistan won the toss and elected to bat.
- Match reduced to 46 overs per side due to the rising sun shining in the batsmen's eyes at the start of the match.
The Test series drawn, attention turned to the three-match ODI series. The two teams met at the Jinnah Stadium, Gujranwala, on 4 December, where Pakistan took victory by 11 runs. Batting first in a reduced 46-over game, the start being delayed due to bright sunlight impeding the batsman, they reached 228/8 by the end of their innings thanks in the most part to 73 from 78 balls from Malik. This was part of a 91-run stand with Wasim Akram, who passed 2,000 ODI runs. New Zealand, however, floundered at 217 all out following Saqlain Mushtaq's five-wicket haul defeating the efforts of Young, with 58, Fleming and Cairns with 36 each, and a last-minute 20 from 18 balls from Chris Harris. Waqar Younis was noted by the media for his "unplayable" deliveries during his 2/48.[19][20]
2nd ODI
6 December 1996
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- Pakistan won the toss and elected to bat.
- Match reduced to 47 overs per side because of overnight dew.
- Problems with the official scorers mean that the correct scores may never be known; for example, Stephen Fleming may have scored anywhere between 88 and 92 runs.
The second ODI took place on 6 December at the Jinnah Stadium in Sialkot. Batting first, Pakistan reached 240 for the loss of only two batsmen thanks to Anwar's 91, Zahoor Elahi's 86 and Ijaz Ahmed's 59, before a collapse sparked by Chris Harris's 5/42 reduced them to 277/9. Fleming led the response with 88 from 95 balls, however despite a 37 from Parore they were unable to overhaul the home side's total, falling all out to 231 with wickets shared between Akram, Younuis, Mushtaq and Shahid Afridi. Anwar's batting prowess earned him the Player of the Match award.[21]
3rd ODI
8 December
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2/33 (10 overs)
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- Pakistan won the toss and elected to bat.
- Mohammad Zahid(both Pak) made their ODI debuts.
The third and final game took place on 8 December at the National Stadium, Karachi. Batting first, having already won the series, Pakistan ended their innings on 234/4 composed of a 51 from Zahoor Elahi, 73 from Ijaz Ahmed and captain Wasim Akram's explosive and "magnificent"[22] 66 from 39 balls. New Zealand, undaunted, began a solid chase and reached the target with seven wickets still in hand thanks to 32 from Young, 60 from Astle (the player of the match), 47 from Parore, 48 from Fleming and 25 from Cairns.[23] Astle, under pressure due to poor form during the series, was praised by the media for his half century, 60 from 66 balls.[22]
Notes
- ^ "New Zealand in Pakistan Nov-Dec 1996 - Summary of Results". CricInfo. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ "NZ Batsmen Suffer Run Drought". The Christchurch Press. 4 December 1996. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ "Pressure On Astle Abates As He Rediscovers Touch". The Christchurch Press. 10 December 1996. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ "1996/97 Test Series Averages - New Zealand v Pakistan". CricInfo. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ "1996/97 ODI Series Averages - New Zealand v Pakistan". CricInfo. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ "New Zealand in Pakistan 1996/97". Cricket Archive. Archived from the original on 3 May 2012. Retrieved 6 June 2012.
- ^ a b "Cricket Tour To Go Ahead". The Christchurch Press. 7 November 1996. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ a b c "Danny Morrison pulls out of Pak tour". CricInfo. 19 November 1996. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ "New Zealanders In Trouble At Tea". CricInfo. 19 November 1996. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ "Scorecard: Pakistan Cricket Board XI v New Zealand". CricInfo. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ "Vaughan Favoured To Open Against Fiery Duo". The Christchurch Press. 21 November 1996. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ "First Test against N. Z. opens today in Lahore". CricInfo. 22 November 1996. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ "Player Profile: Waqar Younis". CricInfo. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ "Player Profile: Mushtaq Ahmed". CricInfo. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ a b c "Doull puts NZ back in contention". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ "Scorecard: Pakistan v New Zealand 1st Test". CricInfo. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ a b "Fleming plugs the leak". CricInfo. 2 December 1996. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ "Scorecard: Pakistan v New Zealand , 2nd Test". CricInfo. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ "Saqlain spins N. Zealand to thrilling Pakistan win". CricInfo. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ "Scorecard: New Zealand in Pakistan ODI Series - 1st ODI". CricInfo. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ "Scorecard: New Zealand in Pakistan ODI Series - 2nd ODI". CricInfo. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ a b "New Zealand Finishes Tour On Winning Note". CricInfo. 9 December 1996. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ "Scorecard: New Zealand in Pakistan ODI Series - 3rd ODI". CricInfo. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
External links
- CricInfo Series Archive - New Zealand in Pakistan, Nov-Dec 1996 from CricInfo
- New Zealand in Pakistan 1996/97 Archived 2012-05-03 at the Wayback Machine from CricketArchive