Pakistan made four changes for the second ODI.
After losing the first ODI by 73 runs, Pakistan made four changes to their playing XI for the second match against New Zealand at Seddon Park, Hamilton. One major change was the absence of Naseem Shah.
Captain Mohammad Rizwan mentioned at the toss that Naseem had a minor injury, so he was not included in the team.
“We have got changes, Naseem and Usman Khan have niggles. Four changes in all for us,” Rizwan said at the toss.
Pakistan will be hoping that it is just a minor issue, as Naseem Shah has dealt with several injuries in his career and missed many matches. The team will be eager for him to recover quickly and be available for the third match.
They made four changes for the second ODI. Imam-ul-Haq, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Wasim Jr, and Sufiyan Muqeem have been included in the playing XI, while Usman Khan, Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, and Mohammad Ali miss out.
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At the time of writing, Pakistan were struggling at 91-7 after 23.4 overs, still needing 202 runs to win. Their pacers have taken all seven wickets so far. Earlier, New Zealand batted first and posted 292-8 in 50 overs. Mitchell Hay was the top scorer with an unbeaten 99, while Muhammad Abbas contributed 41. New Zealand are in a strong position to secure the win and seal the series with one game remaining.
New Zealand (Playing XI): Nick Kelly, Rhys Mariu, Henry Nicholls, Daryl Mitchell, Michael Bracewell(c), Muhammad Abbas, Mitchell Hay(w), Nathan Smith, Jacob Duffy, Ben Sears, William ORourke
Pakistan (Playing XI): Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan(w/c), Salman Agha, Tayyab Tahir, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Haris Rauf, Sufiyan Muqeem, Akif Javed
During the 25th over, a concerning incident took place when Haris Rauf was struck on the helmet. As a result, he had to leave the field. Following his departure, Akif Javed came in to bat.
After Akif was dismissed, Naseem Shah was brought in as a concussion substitute for Haris Rauf, since Rauf was unable to return due to the concussion protocol. This meant that Naseem, who was not originally part of the playing XI, got the opportunity to bat as a concussion substitute. Though Pakistan lost the match by 84 runs, Naseem Shah scored 51 off 44 balls, registering his first half-century in ODIs.
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