'He needed someone at the other end' - Shaheen Afridi lauds Azam's brilliant form in New Zealand T20Is

New Zealand took an unassailable 3-0 lead over Pakistan in the five-match series as they beat them by 45 runs in the third T20I on Wednesday, January 17 at University Oval, Dunedin. After being put in to bat first, New Zealand blew away Pakistan bowlers as Finn Allen played a breathtaking innings of 137 (62). In reply, Pakistan could only reach 179/7 in their 20 overs with Babar Azam once again top-scoring with 58 (37).

Notably, it was the third consecutive fifty for Babar of the series as he earlier registered scores of 57 (35) and 66 (43) in the first two games. Following another fifty from the former Pakistan captain, newly appointed skipper Shaheen Afridi praised his lone effort in the first three matches and stated that he required some support to finish the games.

Also Check: NZ vs PAK: Fan hilariously runs away with the ball after Fakhar Zaman's six lands outside the stadium

"I had also said earlier that Babar was not out of form. We cannot judge him based on a few innings. He has played three fine innings in three matches in the series. He could not finish the matches in our favour. He needed someone at the other end to take the innings deeper. If there was another batter at the other end with Babar, we could have finished the game in our favour," said Afridi in the post-match press conference.

Notably, Babar is the second-highest run scorer of the series so far with 181 runs to his name from three innings at an average of 60.33 and a strike rate of 157.39. The 29-year-old currently ranks on the fourth spot in the ICC T20I batting rankings with 763 ratings to his name. Babar will look to continue his form in the remaining two games and help his side register consolation wins.

Finn Allen levelled the record for most sixes in a T20I innings

Meanwhile, Finn Allen etched his name in record books in the first innings as he levelled the record for most sixes in a T20I innings, smacking 16 maximums in his innings. The Kiwi batter emulated the feat of Afghanistan’s Hazratullah Zazai achieved against Ireland in February 2019.

Also Check: 'Khamosh rahein' - Iftikhar Ahmed gets furious at fan for calling him ‘Chachu’ during Hamilton T20I

He further registered the highest score by a Kiwi batter in T20Is (137 off 62) leaving Brendon McCullum’s 123 (58) vs Bangladesh in T20 World Cup 2012 behind. Allen will look to play another sensational knock in the fourth game of the series on Friday, January 19 at Hagley Oval, Christchurch.