Sharjah - An outstanding spell of off-spin bowling by former captain Sana Mir and a sedate 36 not out by current captain Bismah Mahroof led Pakistan to historic victory as they defeated New Zealand Women in the third One-Day International (ODI).
Sana Mir led the show with a four-wicket haul to bowl New Zealand out for a paltry 155. Pakistan took their own sweet time in pursuit of the target but they eventually got there in the penultimate over which helped them register their first ever ODI victory against New Zealand, in their 13th attempt.
While only one wicket went down to the pace of Aiman Anwer, spin accounted for eight, along with one run out, that brought a premature end to New Zealand's innings. A variety of slow bowling options were put to good use by Pakistan as Mir and Co. unleashed a spin tornado, as a result of which 6.2 overs went unused in New Zealand's innings.
Opting to bat, New Zealand ran into early trouble as the in-form Sophie Devine, who had played a crucial role in New Zealand's series victory with knocks of 103 and 62, was run out for only five. Skipper Suzie Bates struggled to get going before being out stumped off Mir for a 18-ball four. The wickets of Amy Satterthwaite and Katey Martin followed, reducing New Zealand to 50 for 4. Such was the impact the bowlers had on Pakistan's confidence, they got all the fielders inside the circle in an attempt to extend New Zealand's slide.
Sam Curtis tried to stem the rot as she registered a tenacious half-century while Maddy Green and Anna Peterson assisted her in the endeavour. However, a 30-run stand and a 40-run partnership were all they could manage in respective associations with Curtis as the spinners continued to run amok. From 125 for 5, New Zealand lost their last five wickets for only 30 runs to be bowled out for their lowest total against Pakistan.
Contrary to New Zealand's start, Pakistan began in a steady manner with Sidra Ameen and Nahida Khan adding 40 runs for the opening wicket, with the latter playing a more aggressive role. Hannah Rowe managed to end the partnership by trapping Nahida in front for a 31-ball 23. Meanwhile, Pakistan weren't in any rush to reach the target but Ameen's 75-ball 32 and Javeria Khan's 29 off 49 ensured that the hosts didn't veer off course.
While New Zealand managed to pick up a few wickets in the middle overs, they didn't have the luxury of runs to put Pakistan under pressure and also had with an experienced Bismah Maroof leading the chase.
At the end of the 22nd over, Maroof got off the mark with a four, which was the only boundary in her knock while the Pakistan batters failed to score a single boundary after the 29th over. This meant that Pakistan's innings stretched well beyond what they would have preferred. But the presence of Maroof ensured the formalities were duly completed as Pakistan ended their drought against New Zealand.
Scoreboard
NEW ZEALAND WOMEN:
SFM Devine run out 2
SW Bates st Sidra Nawaz b Mir 4
AE Satterthwaite b Aiman Anwer 5
KJ Martin b Nashra Sandhu 15
ML Green lbw b Bismah Mahroof 26
SRH Curtis c Nashra b Sadia 50
AM Peterson c Nashra b Mir 15
AC Kerr lbw b Sadia Yousuf 12
TMM Newton lbw b Mir 7
HM Rowe lbw b Mir 2
LM Kasperek not out 0
EXTRAS: (lb 3, nb 1, w 13) 17
TOTAL: (all out, 43.4 overs) 155
FOW: 1-4, 2-9, 3-28, 4-50, 5-87, 6-125, 7-138, 8-146, 9-154, 10-155.
BOWLING: Aiman Anwer 6.0-1-13-1, Sana Mir 8.4-0-25-4, Sadia Yousuf 10.0-0-23-2, Aliya Riaz 1.0-0-4-0, Nashra Sandhu 10.0-0-39-1, Javeria Khan 4.0-0-27-0, Bismah Maroof 4.0-0-21-1.
PAKISTAN WOMEN:
Nahida Khan lbw b Rowe 23
Sidra Ameen lbw b Kerr 32
Javeria Khan c sub b Peterson 29
Bismah Mahroof not out 36
Iram c Satterthwaite b Peterson 1
Aliya Riaz lbw b Newton 7
Sana Mir not out 12
EXTRAS: (b 1, w 15) 16
TOTAL: (For 5 wkcts, 48.5 overs) 156
FOW: 1-40, 2-71, 3-103, 4-110, 5-124.
BOWLING: AM Peterson 10.0-1-25-2, HM Rowe 5.0-1-29-1, TMM Newton 10.0-2-26-1, LM Kasperek 10.0-0-28-0, AC Kerr 10.0-0-28-1, SW Bates 3.0-0-16-0, AE Satterthwaite 0.5-0-3-0.
TOSS: New Zealand Women
Umpires: Asif Yaqoob and Khalid Mahmood
Reserve Umpire: Rashid Riaz