RAWALPINDI – Rain washed out the first T20I between New Zealand and Pakistan at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Thursday evening.
Earlier, the match was delayed by half an hour due to the wet outfield. But the rain returned when Shaheen Shah Afridi was ready to bowl to the debutant Tim Robinson. Just a brief pause after persistent rains raised the hopes of a five-overs each side match. But it could not happen as the rain returned after just two deliveries. Afridi sent back Robinson on a duck on the second ball. As the rain continued, the umpires called off the match.
Top order batter Usman Khan, allrounder Irfan Khan Niazi and spinner Abrar Ahmed were representing Pakistan for the first time in the T20I. Pacer Mohammad Amir returned to the side after withdrawing his retirement from international cricket.
New Zealand Playing XI: Michael Bracewell (c), Mark Chapman, Josh Clarkson, Jacob Duffy, Dean Foxcroft, Ben Lister, James Neesham, Tim Robinson, Ben Sears, Tim Seifert (wk), Ish Sodhi
Pakistan Playing XI: Babar Azam (c), Saim Ayub, Mohammad Rizwan, Usman Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah, Mohammad Amir, Abrar Ahmed
