Pakistan won the last game of the five-match series against New Zealand to leave the final scoreline at 2-2. Playing against a B-tier BlackCaps side, the result will come as a disappointment for the first assignment of Babar Azam’s second era. Here are the Pakistan player-ratings for the series, out of 10.

Fakhar Zaman – 8

2 matches, 104 runs at 52.00, SR: 133.33, HS: 61

Fakhar came back into the side for the final two T20Is batting at four. He made an impact immediately, scoring a half-century in the fourth game, finishing with 61 off 45 balls. However, his wicket led to Pakistan’s eventual loss in that game as the last specialist batter. He followed up with 43 in the next game, helping Pakistan up to a defendable total.

Shadab Khan – 8

5 matches, 63 runs at 31.50, SR: 190.9, HS: 41
3 wickets at 18.00, ER: 8.87, BBI: 2-15

Shadab played an impactful cameo with the bat in the third T20I, scoring 41 off 20 balls after coming in during the 13th over when Pakistan were 104-3. He struck four boundaries to take Pakistan close to 180 before he was out with nine balls of the innings remaining. He also bashed 15 runs off five balls after he came in with nine balls remaining in the final match. He was less successful with the ball, but took 2-15 in the second match of the series and 1-15 in the last. He wasn’t required to bowl in the first and fourth games and went wicketless in the third.

Babar Azam – 6

5 matches, 125 runs at 31.25, SR: 138.88, HS: 69

Back in as captain for the series, Babar struggled to get going opening the innings. He got a couple of starts, reaching 14 in the second match of the series, and 37 in the second. After he was dismissed for five in the penultimate game, conversations about his strike rate started to swirl once more. However, he hit back with a 44-ball 69 in the fifth match.

Iftikhar Ahmed – 3

5 matches, 31 runs at 15.50, SR: 100.00, HS: 23
1 wicket at 48.00, ER: 8.00, BBI: 1-14

There was to be no Ifti-mania in the series, with his one offering of note with the bat coming in the fourth game where he made 23 off 20 and was unable to get Pakistan over the line, with the side finishing four runs short of New Zealand’s total. He also took the wicket of Mark Chapman in that game as his only contribution to the wickets column in the series.

Usman Khan – 3

5 matches, 59 runs at 14.75, SR: 122.91, HS: 31

Following the pre-series controversy over his suspension by the Emirates Cricket Board over swinging his allegiance back to Pakistan, Usman failed to impress in the series. His maiden T20I innings was a six-ball seven before he was bowled by Ish Sodhi, which he followed in the next game with a seven-ball six. However, he moved up to three for the final game of the series, where he hit a 24-ball 31, before he was once again bowled by Sodhi.

Saim Ayub – 3

5 matches, 57 runs at 14.25, SR: 129.54, HS: 32

Back in the side under its temporary management structure, Ayub had a quiet series. He got two starts, one each in the third and fourth game but failed to kick-on. Despite his prowess in the PSL and big-hitting capabilities, his relatively slow strike rate was also a disappointment in the series.

Usama Mir – 6

2 matches, 3 wickets at 21.33, ER: 8.00, BBI: 2-21

Mir played in the fourth and fifth matches in the series. He had an expensive first outing, conceding 43 runs from his four overs and taking just the one wicket, Dean Foxcroft skying into the deep. He was much more effective in the second game he played, however, bowling four overs and conceding just 21 runs as well as taking crucial wickets in Tim Seifert and Mark Chapman. Seifert had just reached 50 when he was bowled by Mir and Chapman fell in his following over, also bowled.

Abbas Afridi – 7

3 matches, 5 wickets at 14.20, ER: 8.87, BBI: 3-20

Afridi made an instant impact when he was brought in for the third game. He was the pick of the Pakistan bowlers, returning figures of 2-27 off his three overs. He followed up with three wickets in the next game, the only bright spark for Pakistan’s bowlers in a tough defeat.

Mohammad Rizwan – 6

3 matches, 67 runs at INF, SR: 121.81, HS: 45*

Rizwan played a starring role in Pakistan’s dominant win in the second game of the series. He hit 45 not out off 34 balls to guide the side to their target with 47 balls to spare. He retired hurt in the third game, and missed the remainder of the series with a hamstring injury.

Irfan Khan – 6

3 matches, 48 runs at INF, SR: 126.31, HS: 30*

Making his T20I debut in the washed-out first game, Irfan properly opened up his account in the second. He combined for an important partnership with Rizwan, hitting 18 of the 36 runs in it and was still in the middle for the winning runs. He also scored 30* in the third T20I, combining with Shadab to give the side a big finish. However, he was also ruled out of the series after that match with a hamstring injury.

Imad Wasim – 7

2 matches, 1 wicket at 37.00, ER: 7.40, BBI: 1-5
26 runs at INF, SR: 185.71, HS: 22*

After coming out of international retirement, Imad played the final two games of the series. He went wicketless in the first but scored 22 runs off 11 balls at the end of the chase. However, he was unable to get Pakistan over the line. He also took a wicket in his only over of the final match, trapping Cole McConchie lbw.

Mohammad Amir – 6

4 matches, 3 wickets at 28.66, ER: 8.32, BBI: 2-13

Another one back from international retirement, Amir made a comeback in the opening washout but didn’t bowl a ball. He was back to near his best in the second game though, returning figures of 2-13 off three overs and taking two wickets in the powerplay. He conceded 41 runs off 3.2 overs in the fifth game, however, having missed the third.

Abrar Ahmed – 6

3 matches, 2 wickets at 23.00, ER: 5.75, BBI: 2-15

Abrar bowled well in the second game, finishing with figures of 2-15 but went wicketless in the third. He was dropped for the rest of the series.

Naseem Shah – 2

3 matches, 2 wickets at 35.50, ER: 10.14, BBI: 1-27

An uncharacteristically quiet series for Naseem. He took a wicket in both the second and third matches but was expensive in the latter, conceding 44 from three overs. He was dropped for the following two matches.

Shaheen Shah Afridi – 8

4 matches, 8 wickets at 10.00, ER: 7.38, BBI: 4-30

The outgoing captain came into the series with a point to prove, and he delivered. One of the two balls he bowled in the first T20I resulted in the wicket of Tim Robinson, and he took three wickets in the following match. He went wicketless in the third T20I and missed out on the next match. However, he roared back in the final game, taking figures of 4-30, leading Pakistan’s series-levelling win.

Shaheen Shah Afridi’s second-best career T20I figures helped Pakistan beat New Zealand by nine runs in Lahore last night 🇵🇰

The five-match series finished 2-2 🤝#PAKvNZ pic.twitter.com/NiNyvFixJS

— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) April 28, 2024

Zaman Khan – 2

1 match, 1 wicket at 35.00, ER: 11.66, BBI: 1-35

Zaman only played in the fourth T20I and while he took the important wicket of Tom Blundell, he was expensive. He conceded 35 runs from his three overs and missed out on the final game.

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