Pakistan vs New Zealand Highlights, Tri-Series Final: NZ clinches title with 5-wicket win in Karachi

Faheem Ashraf returns with a bumper and Phillips scythes the ball over fine-leg for FOUR. Just a hit away now. Phillips nearly chops one back onto the stumps but an athletic dive helps him reel in two runs before Rizwan flicks the bails. The scores are level. A wide to follow and that's it. New Zealand secure their third consecutive win in the Tri-Series and clinch the title with a five-wicket win in Karachi.  

Shaheen to Latham, OUT! Has the catch put him in trouble there? Short ball angling in and Latham hooks the ball to the deep. A sliding catch from Abrar running in from deep fine leg and it seems like he has sprained his neck. A fine knock from the left-hander in the nick of time has put Kiwi on course for the title here. Michael Bracewell is the new batter. A fine pull to the deep opens his account. NZ 236/5 in 45 overs

Tom Latham c Abrar Ahmed b Shaheen Shah Afridi 56 (64b 5x4)

After a hat-trick of ducks, Latham has found form with a 61-ball half-century. He immediately brings out another reverse-sweep past short third for another FOUR and NZ are strolling towards the finishing line. 

Abrar lands one on the full outside the off-stump and Latham unfurls a cheeky reverse-sweep past Rizwan for FOUR. Anothet tossed-up delivery on off-stump and Latham brings out the sweep once again through square for FOUR. NZ 221/4 in 42 overs

Naseem Shah overpitches and Glenn Phillips joins in on the act with a sumptuous drive past Babar Azam at mid-off. He had no chance to try and stop that delivery and Phillips retains strike with a single. NZ 204/4 in 40 overs

Mitchell smites the ball from length hard with the sweep and bisects the fielders in the deep to find another FOUR off Abrar. He follows up with another forceful sweep and finds FOUR to bring up his half-century in only 56 balls. Another FOUR as Abrar errs with a poor delivery on length. Mitchell sweeps the ball to the right of the square leg fielder this time. Abrar to Mitchell, OUT! A stunning riposte. Mitchell chips the ball straight down the ground and Abrar holds onto it. 

Daryl Mitchell c & b Abrar Ahmed 57 (58b 6x4)

Latham and Mitchell turn the heat on the fielders with excellent rotation of strike with ones and twos. They have managed to pierce the gaps consistently, even rendering Naseem ineffective in this spell. NZ 181/3 in 38 overs

Shaheen steams in but errs on length yet again as Mitchell latches the pull across mid-on for FOUR. Things progressively slipping out of Pakistan's grip after some sloppy efforts in the field. NZ 169/3 in 36 overs

Width on length and Latham slaps the ball through extra cover for FOUR. Shaheen immediately tightens his line and nips one in sharply to whiz past the outside edge. Shaheen goes full and wide this time and a thick outside-edge flies through the slip region for another FOUR. 

Abrar's carrom-ball-like release lands on length and Mitchell has an eternity to set up for the sweep smeared through mid-wicket for FOUR. NZ 140/3 in 31 overs

Mitchell and Latham have built on a quick stand with a steady diet of singles. Mitchell then gets a release boundary with a paddle-sweep FOUR off Agha. A sloppy effort from Shaheen at deep fine leg doesn't help Pakistan. NZ 133/3 in 30 overs

Naseem returns and bang comes the wicket! A firm rising bumper and Conway's beaten for pace on the pull. The top-edge flies straight to backward square and he has to depart after the umpires have a look at the front-foot no-ball.Tom Latham is in at 5. He's hanging on three ducks in a row but gets off the blocks first ball this time with a feather down to third man. NZ 113/3 in 25 overs

Devon Conway c Abrar Ahmed b Naseem Shah 48 (74b 5x4)

Conway has gotten a move on after creaming Khushdil for a FOUR in the previous over. He pre-empts a reverse-sweep but has to dead-bat his way out of it after Salman flips in a full-length delivery. Conway slices another delivery down to third past Rizwan for FOUR. 

Pakistan continue to inject the slower bowlers and the boundaries have completely waned from the radar. Conway is under pressure with a hoard of dots to his name. NZ 89/2 in 21 overs

Salman to Williamson, OUT! He's stumped this time. Williamson advances down the track but the flighted delivery from Agha spins in sharply to beat the bat and Rizwan does the rest. Daryl Mitchell is in at 4. NZ 78/2 in 18 overs

Kane Williamson b Agha Salman 34 (49b 3x4 1x6)

Abrar attempts a googly and Conway arches back once again to flay the ball through extra cover for FOUR. A single to follow and the Kiwis are bossing the chase now. Pakistan have failed to sustain the pressure with good deliveries here. NZ 71/1 in 15 overs

A rank delivery on length from Salman Agha and Williamson quickly pounces on it by lofting the ball over mid-off for FOUR. 50-run partnership between Williamson and Conway comes up in 76 deliveries as they had to grind it out from a potent new-ball attack from Shaheen and Naseem. Width this time from Agha and Conway rocks back to cut forcefully through point for another FOUR.  NZ 63/1 in 14 overs

End of the Powerplay and it's time for spin with Abrar Ahmed entering the attack. He gets some straightaway as Conway and Williamson tread on singles. Four from the over. NZ 49/1 in 11 overs

Shaheen continues to pepper the batters with the short delivery. Conway nearly miscues the pull towards mid-on but gets away with a single. Williamson fails to get on top of the bounce too as it falls short of the square-leg fielder. Short again but Williamson gets enough time to ace the swivel and steers it behind square for FOUR this time. NZ 45/1 in 10 overs

Williamson attempts a charge at Faheem to make room but steers the shot straight to the cover-point fielder. The dots have piled up and Williamson's response is a gentle swivel-pull over deep mid-wicket for SIX! NZ 36/1 in 9 overs

Change of ends here for Shaheen as he takes over from Naseem. He continues to attack the fuller lengths and Williamson presents a solid block of wood to defend. Neither one giving an inch here, just the one from it. NZ 29/1 in 8 overs

Just a three-over burst for Shaheen here as Faheem Ashraf takes over. A string of dots and Faheem attempts to slide the ball inward. Williamson taps the ball to point and steals a single. NZ 28/1 in 7 overs

Naseem to Williamson, beaten! Beautiful movement from length as Williamson attempts to drive on the up as it swerves away late with the outswinger. And Williamson rides the bounce elegantly this time as he opens the face of the bat deftly through point for FOUR. A single to follow. Naseem rushes one through length and Conway gets a toe-edge to trickle past first slip for FOUR.

An absolute seed from Naseem as he squares up Conway with a delivery that teased to move in but seamed away sharply. How can you play those deliveries? Simply hope the timber isn't rattled and you don't get a nick on the ball. Naseem loses direction and concedes FIVE wides down leg. And Conway finally gets off the mark after 10 balls with a single. NZ 15/1 in 4 overs

Shaheen is charged up as he takes out a couple of slips and shapes the ball in sharply from length. The ball hits Conway high on the front pad and the bowler is not too keen for a review. Shaheen slides the ball and Williamson taps it back neatly to mid-on. This is going to be an engaging tussle. NZ 8/1 in 3 overs

Loud shout as Naseem Shah thuds the second ball onto Young's front pad. The umpire raises the finger straightaway as Young reviews the decision. That seems pretty much plumb and Young is back on his way. Kane Williamson is in at 3 and he is off the blocks with a single. A sharp first over from Naseem with a wicket and a run. NZ 6/1 in 2 overs

Will Young lbw b Naseem Shah 5 (7b 1x4)

Shaheen Afridi takes the new ball as Will Young and Devon Conway open the chase.

Length ball with a hint of room and Young eases into a smooth drive past cover first ball for FOUR. Shaheen comes back with a sharp yorker and Young digs it out neatly before taking a single. NZ 5/0 in 1 over

The Kiwis can walk away with some silverware and go one-up on the hosts before the meet again in five days for the Champions Trophy opener. 

Michael Bracewell: Pretty decent surface, maybe a bit two-paced, but hopefully it will get betters under lights. The modern game, you have to keep the batters guessing. You have to vary your line and length. There is so much power in the game, very tough for the bowlers.

O'Rourke to Faheem, OUT! A clever roll of the arms over the ball from O'Rourke and the slower-bumper is skied by Faheem's slog. This time Santner pouches it at mid-off and a valuable knock comes to an end. O'Rourke to Naseem, OUT! All over for the hosts. O'Rourke finishes with superb figures of 4/43 as Pakistan fold at 242 after opting to bat first. 

Faheem Ashraf c Santner b O'Rourke 22 (21b 2x4); Naseem Shah c Bracewell b O'Rourke 19 (17b 1x4 1x6)

After Duffy's misfield at deep fine leg conceded a four in the previous over, Faheem has creamed Smith's short delivery through point for another FOUR. This partnership has gained steam rather quickly and Naseem is playing a decent hand here with Faheem. Another catch goes down as Faheem's swipe over mid-wicket slips through Phillips' grasp in the deep. That's a pretty rare occurence on the outfield and the Pakistan fans are delighted. Width from Smith and Naseem throws his blade at it to find another FOUR past deep third man! PAK 241/8 in 49 overs

Glenn Phillips dips one on length and Naseem Shah wallops the ball over deep mid-wicket for SIX. He retains strike with a single. PAK 219/8 in 47 overs

Naseem Shah and Faheem Ashraf attempt to gather a few late runs. Five overs have passed since the last boundary as Santner continues to skim through his overs. The batters struggle to drill the ball past the circle. PAK 210/8 in 46 overs

Another one bites the dust! Santner offers a juicy delivery in the slot outside off-stump and Khushdil couldn't have gotten the slog-sweep more perfectly to the deep mid-wicket fielder. Fans remain dumbfounded in the stands. So does Khushdil who offers a wry smile after top-edging that ball. Santner to Shaheen Afridi, OUT! Two in the over for NZ!

Khushdil Shah c Phillips b Santner 7 (18b); Shaheen Shah Afridi c Young b Santner 1 (4b)

Duffy to Tayyab, OUT! Short ball and hammered straight to mid-wicket. He's absolutely nailed the hit but it goes straight to the fielder. Tayyab bangs his bat on the ground in frustration and just when Pakistan were hoping to switch gears, they've been pegged back again. 

Tayyab Tahir c Williamson b Duffy 38 (33b 4x4 1x6)

A rank loosener on length from Bracewell and Tayyab on one knee hammers it over mid-wicket for FOUR. Touch of width this time and Tayyab glides it down third and beats the fielder for another FOUR. A lot of energy in the running this time and Tayyab waltzes for two runs to retain the strike. 12 from the over. PAK 193/5 in 41 overs

Duffy hits the slot and Tayyab clears his front leg and clobbers the ball down the ground for an 80m SIX! A string of singles to follow but the Karachi crowd has found some voice after that maximum. And building on that Tayyab unfurls a delightful scoop over short fine-leg for FOUR! 

PAK 181/5 in 40 overs

Bracewell to Agha, OUT! An attempted reverse-sweep and it lands straight with the fielder. Pre-empted shot there and the ball rises over his blade to hit the top-edge. No distance on that shot as the ball scoops up nicely for Duffy at backward point. 

PAK 162/5 in 38 overs

Salman Agha c Duffy b Bracewell 45 (65b 1x4 1x6)

Santner strangles the batters with a string of dots. Salman and Tayyab have a huge responsibility to find the boundaries to ensure a decent finish from here. They will need at least 100 runs to make a fight out of this contest. PAK 158/4 in 36 overs

Short from O'Rourke and Rizwan pulls it over deep fine-leg for SIX! But there's an excellent comeback as O'Rourke cleans up Rizwan with the incoming delivery. Chopped on as Rizwan's cut hits the inside-edge and onto the stumps. Pakistan loses momentum yet again. Tayyab Tahir is the new batter in. 

Mohammad Rizwan b O'Rourke 46 (76b 4x4 1x6)

Six overs since the last boundary has been hit and Rizwan and Salman have picked up little pace on running between the wickets. The skipper continues to sprint and hop but is seemingly still low with his striking rates. And right as we speak, Rizwan has pulled Nathan across the line for a FOUR through mid-wicket! That will calm the nerves for Pakistan to an extent. PAK 132/3 in 31 overs

He continues to hit probing lines that pushes the batters deep into the crease. Rizwan struggles to find a boundary as his strike rate dips below 45 after 64 balls! PAK 114/3 in 28 overs

A maiden over from Santner. Tidy stuff from the New Zealand captain.  PAK 108/3 in 26 overs

Another fruitful over for Pakistan. Eight runs came from Nathan Smith's over. PAK 108/3 in 25 overs

Now runs are coming quickly for Pakistan. Rizwan leans forward and times it beautifully straight down the ground with a straight bat face. 

100 up for Pakistan in 23.5 overs. Pakistan will need Rizwan and Agha to bat long. Can the duo repeat their heroics again? PAK 100/3 in 24 overs

Salman Ali Agha joins the act now. He dispatches Phillips for a maximum. A much needed over that for Pakistan as they took on the part-timer Glenn Phillips. 12 runs came off that over. PAK 96/3 in 23 overs

Rizwan breaks the shackles. A welcome boundary for Pakistan and their captain. It was tossed up delivery from Phillips, Rizwan presses forward and drives it through the covers for a boundary.

Mitchell Santner is not giving an inch away to this Pakistan pair. Another tidy over from the Blackcaps captain. He just gave away two runs in his fourth over. His spell reads: 4-0-7-0.  PAK 84/3 in 22 overs

Good comeback from Glenn Phillips after an expensive first over. Just four singles from this over. The current partnership between Rizwan and Agha is worth 28.  PAK 82/3 in 21 overs

Pakistan captain Mohammad Rizwan is struggling to rotate the strike. He is batting on 10 runs off 34 balls. PAK 78/3 in 20 overs

Salman Ali Agha welcomes Glenn Philips with a boundary. It was tossed up from Philips, Salman lunges forward and drives it over the top of covers for a boundary. Seven runs came from his first over. PAK 76/3 in 19 overs

Excellent this from the New Zealand captain. Just one run came from his second over. They have tightened the screw here in Karachi.  PAK 69/3 in 18 overs

Another tidy over from Bracewell. Just three runs came from his over. New Zealand spinners are chipping away with the quick overs without giving anything. Rizwan and Agha have found it hard to find that release shot in their partnership. PAK 68/3 in 17 overs

Here is New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner into the attack. Just two singles came from Santner's over.  PAK 65/3 in 16 overs 

Another excellent over from Bracewell. Just two singles came from his fourth over.  PAK 63/3 in 15 overs 

Pakistan have lost Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam and Saud Shakeel as they are reeling at 61 for 3 after 14 overs. 

First boundary for Rizwan. Nathan Smith banged it short into the wicket around middle and leg. Rizwan pulls it away to the deep backward square leg fence for a boundary.

Just two runs came from Bracewell's over. Pakistan will again be banking on Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha to rescue them. PAK 57/3 in 13 overs