New Zealand vs Pakistan, 1st T20I: Probable XI, Match Prediction, Pitch Report, Weather Forecast, and Live Streaming Details

New Zealand and Pakistan will face each other in the first T20I of the five-match series on Friday, January 12. The Eden Park in Auckland will host the clash.

After Babar Azam stepped down as the T20I skipper, Pakistan are all set to begin their new era under Shaheen Shah Afridi. There is also a chance that Babar will not bat as an opener with Mohammad Rizwan and Saim Ayub being the preferred choices.

Fakhar Zaman is in the squad but is likely to bat in the middle-order. Aamer Jamal was stupendous in the Test series in Australia and he will be keen to make a mark now in the shortest format of the game.

Pakistan have some quality bowlers in their ranks, including Shaheen, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Wasim Jr. and Zaman Khan. Azam Khan and Iftikhar Ahmed add firepower to their middle order.

New Zealand, on the other hand, have their skipper Kane Williamson, who will play four matches in the series. The Black Caps recently had their challenges against Bangladesh and facing Pakistan would not be easy.

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New Zealand vs Pakistan Match Details

Match: New Zealand vs Pakistan, 1st T20, Pakistan tour of New Zealand

Date and Time: January 12, 2023, 12:40 pm IST

Venue: Eden Park, Auckland

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New Zealand vs Pakistan Head-to-Head

New Zealand and Pakistan have faced each other in 34 T20Is since their first meeting back in 2007. Pakistan have had the upper hand with 20 wins to their name.

Matches Played: 34

New Zealand: 13

Pakistan: 20

N/R: 1

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New Zealand vs Pakistan Pitch Report

The average score in 25 T20Is at the venue is 176, implying that a high-scoring match might be on the cards. The track is not going to change much and hence, fielding first should be the way forward for teams.

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New Zealand vs Pakistan Weather Report

There is no chance of rain for the time being in Auckland. Temperatures will be around the 24-degree Celsius mark. The humidity will be in the 60s.

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New Zealand vs Pakistan Probable XIs

New Zealand

Finn Allen, Devon Conway, Kane Williamson (C), Tim Seifert (wk), Glenn Phillips, Daryl Mitchell, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Matt Henry, Adam Milne, Ish Sodhi,

Pakistan

Saim Ayub, Mohammad Rizwan (WK), Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Shah Afridi (C), Mohammad Wasim Jr, Usama Mir, Haris Rauf, Zaman Khan

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New Zealand vs Pakistan Match Prediction

Both New Zealand and Pakistan have well-balanced squads and picking an outright winner is tough. Given the conditions and the nature of the surface, one can expect the chasing team to win.

Prediction: The team batting second to win the match.

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New Zealand vs Pakistan Live Streaming details and channel list

TV: N/A

Live Streaming: Amazon Prime Video