Series in the bag but New Zealand will still want to finish strong
With one game to go the series is in the bag for New Zealand who head to Wellington with an unassailable 3-1 lead. Dead rubbers can be tricky games to play as they risk going through the motions. But given that both sides are playing second-string outfits, there is a lot to play for – including securing places in the respective teams on a long-term basis.
Pakistan have adopted a very high-risk strategy in the series. They have thrown caution to the wind with a go big or go home approach which, unfortunately for them, has been more miss than hit. Everything came right in the third T20I when they won by nine wickets, but the other games have been thumping losses. Opener Hasan Nawaz perhaps best personifies Pakistan’s high risk, high rewards approach – he has knocks of 0, 0, 105 and 1.
New Zealand vs Pakistan | Fifth T20I | Wednesday 26 March 2025 | Sky Stadium, Wellington | 08:15am
Venue: Sky Stadium, Wellington
Known informally as the Cake Tin, Wellington’s Sky Stadium has played host to 16 T20I. While New Zealand’s record here is only moderate, they have won nine out of their 16 games played here (56.25%); Pakistan’s is poor. They have played two games in Wellington and have lost both times – going down by 95 runs and seven wickets in the two games.
The team that has fielded first has won nine of the 16 games played at Sky Stadium. It is no surprise then that the captain who has won the toss has opted to field first on ten occasions.
The highest score posted at the venue is 219 for six – a score posted by New Zealand in 2019 that was built around an excellent effort of 84 from 43 at the top of the order by Tim Seifert.
Weather:
Light winds, temperatures below 20 and a very low chance of rain. It’s looking like a good day for cricket. Humidity at 75% suggests that there could be a bit of help for the seamers through the air.
Form (most recent game first):
New Zealand: W, L, W, W, L.
Pakistan: L, W, L, L, A.
Key player:
New Zealand, Tim Seifert: Thus far in the series he has posted scores of 44, 45, 19 and 44. He is a man in form and with the series in the bag he can really let loose and play with freedom. In all but one of his knocks this series he has managed strike-rates of 200 or more. If Pakistan don’t arrive in the right mental state, the man they call ‘Bam Bam’ could well take advantage of their lack of purpose.
Pakistan, Haris Rauf: We flagged him ahead of the previous game as well and he didn’t disappoint as he returned figures of three for 27. He missed the series opener, but he has taken eight wickets in the next three games at an average of just 9.5. Pakistan is an inexperienced side who are battling to perform, but that doesn’t apply to Rauf. After struggling for form at the end of last year and the start of this one, he is back to his best and taking wickets again. At Mount Maunganui he didn’t just take three wickets, he grabbed the key scalps of Seifert, Mark Chapman and Daryl Mitchell.
Verdict: New Zealand
It is a dead rubber which means there is less to play for, but it is hard to see Pakistan winning. They pulled off one surprise in the third game of the series but if anything, that should have served as a wake-up call for New Zealand who will look to finish the series on a high at a venue where Pakistan have never won before.
