Pak vs NZ, T20 World Cup semi-final: Babar Azam’s team has advantage over New Zealand

The semi-final battle between Pakistan and New Zealand is also a tussle between two extremes. While Pakistan is the most unpredictable team out of the top four teams, New Zealand is probably the most consistent team in the tournament. The aggression shown by Pakistan in big clashes is their edge over any other team, and this approach is difficult to counter in T20 matches where 12 balls can change the game.

On top of that, Pakistan has been defeating New Zealand with ease in previous World Cup matches without much difficulty. There have been World Cups where New Zealand looked unstoppable till they met Pakistan which suddenly produced match-winners out of nowhere. Be it Inzmam or Haris Rauf, Pakistan’s heroes emerged just at the right time and won the match for their team. The two teams have clashed six times in World Cups and Pakistan won four out of it and lost one by just one run. So, they displayed quite a good nerve control in five matches.

Plus, Mohammad Haris’ inclusion has added the x-factor to Pakistan and he can turn around the scenario in less than twenty balls. Shaheen Shah Afridi is another player who is likely to leave a mark on the game.

Truth be told, no big team would like to meet Pakistan in any of the important ICC games, simply because they perform totally opposite of their nature in these games.

A lot will depend on New Zealand’s calmness during the game because Pakistan can pressurise and rattle any opposition on its day.

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