Rizwan rues missed chances in Pakistan’s series loss to New Zealand

Having conceded an unassailable 2-0 lead to New Zealand, Pakistan were at the receiving end of a 43-run defeat in the series finale on Saturday, 5 April.

The loss marked the end of a disappointing white-ball tour for Pakistan that also saw a 4-1 loss in the T20I series.

A particular shortcoming in the ODI series, captain Mohammad Rizwan pinpointed, was the inability to make the most of the new ball in seam-friendly conditions after winning the toss and opting to bowl first on all three occasions.

“I think if you ask any team in the world what they would do on a wet, green pitch after winning the toss on a New Zealand morning before the winters here, they’d say the same,” Rizwan told reporters in the post-match press conference.

“The conditions that were put in front of us, we all knew that. The problem was that with the new ball, we tried to survive that phase. We tried to get through the initial 10 overs.

“If you look at the way they (New Zealand) played, they were taking wickets with the new ball in the second innings. So, we didn't take the benefit of winning the toss.

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“If you think we should've batted first after winning the toss, it would've been something completely different because the conditions didn't favor that.”

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The series loss adds to Pakistan’s recent losses, having finished without a win at the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 as hosts.

Noting a pattern in Pakistan's recent struggles, Rizwan stated, “The problem that we've had consistently came out during the Champions Trophy and the tri-series (against New Zealand and South Africa).

“If you look at the games we've played, we've been able to hold the teams till 40 overs. We're losing the plot after that.

“Hopefully, all of us alongside the management can work towards having the same effort till the 50th over that we put in the initial 30-35 overs.”

Chasing 265 in a rain-shortened contest (42 overs) in Mount Maunganui, Pakistan had got off to a good start with Babar Azam notching a half-century. However, the visitors were unable to close the game with wickets falling in quick succession as Kiwi pacers took control.

When quizzed about senior players such as himself and Babar not being able to finish chases, Rizwan responded, “We definitely need to bring some improvement in that department, there are no excuses there.

“Our ability to finish games is lagging, which is why I think we're not able to produce results. But there are a lot of things around it that we need to take into account.”