Pakistan team failed to chase 179 during the last-over thriller in Lahore’s iconic Gaddafi Stadium.
Babar Azam, after the match, appreciated the bowlers for making a comeback and restricting New Zealand to 178 after a good start by the batters.
However, he blamed the batting collapse for the team’s failure in chasing the target.
“I think we restricted them in bowling well. We were expecting 190-200 but the bowlers stuck to their plans. It was changeable, but we had a batting collapse as we lost three wickets in the powerplay,” said Babar Azam.
“When you lose back-to-back wickets, you need a few overs to catch up but we got derailed in that period.”
He then appreciated left-handed batter Fakhar Zaman for his impressive knock of 61 runs from 45 balls, which featured four boundaries and three sixes.
“Fakhar [Zaman] played an outstanding innings. We wanted to chase it with positive intent but we were unable to do so,” Babar added.
The right-handed batter also acknowledged the challenge of forced changes due to injuries to key players during the series.
He also shared that the team wanted to try different combinations during the series and expressed optimism about the team’s preparation for the T20 World Cup.
“There were some changes due to injuries but youngsters put in a great effort. Our plan was to give a proper opportunity to (test our) bench strength and to try different combinations. Hopefully, we will have the team ready come the time of the World Cup,” he concluded.
New Zealand are currently leading the five-match series 2-1. The two teams will square off in the last match of the series on April 27.