New Zealand vs Pakistan, T20 WC 2022 Semi-Final 1: Players records and approaching milestones

The T20 World Cup 2022 has entered its knockout stage as New Zealand and Pakistan gear up to clash in the first semi-final of the marquee tournament on Wednesday, November 9 at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Kane Williamson’s side topped Group 1 with seven points while Babar Azam and his Pakistani team finished second in Group 2 with six points. Notably, both sides met in last month’s Tri-Series final in New Zealand where the Men in Green defeated the hosts in the summit clash.

The Kiwis have been the in-form team in the competition with resounding victories against the hosts Australia, Sri Lanka and Ireland. They lost a solitary encounter to England by 20 runs while their match with Afghanistan got called off due to rain in Melbourne. The Blackcaps thrashed the Aussies by 89 runs in the opening encounter of the Super 12 round to set the tone for them going forward in the WC.

On the other hand, after suffering heartbreaking defeats to India and Zimbabwe, Pakistan bounced back brilliantly to register three consecutive wins, against Netherlands, South Africa and Bangladesh. The inclusion of explosive batter Mohammad Haris, Shadab Khan’s incredible performances and Shaheen Afridi’s return to form have been the major reasons for Pakistan’s comeback in the Super 12 stage. The 2021 runners-up New Zealand and the 2009 Champions Pakistan are all set to clash in a mouth-watering semi-final contest of the eighth edition of the T20 World Cup.

Meanwhile, here are some of the important stats and numbers ahead of the Semi-Final 1 between New Zealand and Pakistan in the T20 WC 2022:

Head-to-Head: The H2H record between the two sides favors Pakistan as they have beaten the Kiwis 17 times out of the 28 T20Is played while the Blackcaps have tasted victories on 11 occasions. In T20 World Cups, it is again Pakistan who has dominated their opponent as in six meetings, the Men in Green have won four times and the Kiwis two.

1 – Devon Conway (99) needs one four to complete 100 fours in T20Is.

3 – Shadab Khan (97) is three wickets away from reaching the landmark of 100 T20I wickets.

1 – Daryl Mitchell (49) needs one four to reach 50 fours in T20Is.

4 – Babar Azam (346) is four fours away from reaching 350 fours in the shortest international format.

2 – Ish Sodhi (198) is two scalps away from completing 200 wickets across formats.

2 – James Neesham (48) requires two fours to get to 50 fours in T20 internationals.

1 - Shadab Khan (97) is also one scalp away from surpassing Shahid Afridi (97) and becoming the leading wicket-taker for Pakistan in T20Is.

1 – Haris Rauf (99) needs one scalp to reach 100 wickets in international cricket.

4 – Mohammad Nawaz (46) requires four scalps to complete 50 T20I wickets.

3 – Iftikhar Ahmed (47) requires three fours to get to 50 fours in the T20I format.

3 – Mohammad Rizwan (47) needs three dismissals to complete 50 dismissals as a wicketkeeper in T20Is.