Three player battles to watch out for in New Zealand- Pakistan match from 20-20 World Cup

On the back of great luck and three consecutive wins, Pakistan have eventually landed in the semi-final. In the penultimate stage of the 20-20 World Cup, the Babar Azam-led side will face New Zealand for a chance to play back-to-back finals in a multi-team event.

New Zealand were the first team to qualify for the semi-final stage after getting a no-frills victory over Ireland. The Kane Williamson-led side have lost just one match in the tournament and are the team to beat. Pakistan have come back into the foray after being all but out and will go into the semi-final stage with renewed energy.

There will be some high-intensity player battles in the mouth-watering New Zealand- Pakistan match as well. Let’s look a three of them.

Glenn Philips vs Haris Rauf

Glenn Philips vs Haris Rauf (Image source: Twitter)

New Zealand batter Glenn Philips came with a great repertoire into the 20-20 World Cup. The young batter however has finally come of age at the mega event. In 4 matches, the right-hander has made 195 runs with a sensational strike rate of 163.87 seconds only to SUryakumar Yadav among the semi-finalists.

Pakistan however have a weapon of their own in the name of Haris Rauf. The premium pace bowler clocks in excess of 150kmph on regular basis, something that makes hitting him a huge task. He has taken 6 wickets so far and could add more against New Zealand- Pakistan match.

Finn Allen vs Shaheen Afridi

Finn Allen vs Shaheen Afridi (Image source Twitter)

Shaheen Afridi after remaining wicketless in the first two matches has finally found his form and has taken 8 wickets in the following 3 matches. Moreover, the left-arm pacer took a wicket each in his first overs in the past two games; a stat which could trouble New Zealand opener, Finn Allen.

The right-hand batter despite not making a huge amount of runs, has given a quick start to the Kiwi’s innings on which they go on to build big targets. A battle between Afridi and Allen would be mouth-watering to watch.

Babar Azam vs Trent Boult

Babar Azam vs Trent Boult (image source: Twitter)

The Pakistan captain has failed to get going in the 20-20 World Cup so far. If there was however a match to get back to form, that would be the semi-final clash with New Zealand. The right-hand batter has so far made a paltry 39 runs in 5 matches at an average of 7.8 and a strike rate of 61.90.

Kiwi bowler Trent Boult however would be ready to make sure that Azam continues his poor run of form and doesn’t influence the game at all. The left-arm pacer has taken 6 wickets in 4 matches and has all the skills to trouble Babar Azam. It would be interesting to see who comes on top.

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