Cricket - ICC Men's Champions Trophy - Group A - Pakistan v New Zealand - National Stadium, Karachi, Pakistan - February 19, 2025 Pakistan's Mohammad Rizwan in action REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro
KARACHI, Pakistan (Reuters) - Pakistan captain Mohammad Rizwan said wayward bowling in the death overs and Fakhar Zaman's injury robbed them of momentum in the Champions Trophy opener against New Zealand on Wednesday.
Pakistan's title defence in the first global tournament in the country since 1996 got off to a stuttering start with New Zealand winning the Group A match by 60 runs.
The touring side were 113-3 at the halfway stage of their innings and still racked up 320-5 riding hundreds by opener Will Young and player-of-the-match Tom Latham.
Pakistan also had to rejig their top order after opener Fakhar Zaman was injured while fielding and his absence from the field meant he was unable to open the innings.
Saud Shakeel opened with Babar but managed only six and Fakhar made 24 batting at number four.
"We didn't expect they would get 320. We thought they'd get around 260 when we took those early wickets," Rizwan said at the presentation ceremony.
"The Will Young-Latham partnership was crucial. We tried, but they played very smartly and that's why they got to that total. We lost momentum twice, first in the death overs and then in the powerplay with the bat.
"That was the time to gain momentum in a 320-plus chase. Having Fakhar Zaman (as opener) was crucial. You know how he bats in the powerplay."
Pakistan will fly to Dubai where they face arch-rivals India in a must-win match on Sunday.
"We didn't want to put pressure on ourselves by thinking we are defending champions," Rizwan said. "This match is gone, and the next match is another normal match for us."
New Zealand captain Mitchell Santer admitted even he did not expect a 300-plus score after their sluggish start and praised Glenn Phillips' breezy 61 off 39 balls down the order.
"We were thinking 260-280, but it shows what you can do if you have a platform and wickets in hand," Santner, in his first global tournament as New Zealand captain, said.
"After the score we got, the first 10 overs with the ball were outstanding, the way our new-ball guys were able to smash a length."
New Zealand face Bangladesh in their next match on Monday.
(Reporting by Amlan Chakraborty in New Delhi; editing by Ed Osmond)
