New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner was quite a relieved man as his team ticked all the boxes on its way to the title in the Three-Nation ODI Tournament, beating Pakistan in the final in Karachi. The victory is a big boost for New Zealand ahead of the upcoming Champions Trophy in Pakistan and UAE starting on February 19.
New Zealand bundled out Pakistan for 242 with left-arm pacer Will O’Rourke using the movement offered by the pitch to claim 4-43. In the replay, the Black Caps rode by fine half-centuries by Daryll Mitchell (57, 68 balls, 6x4) and Tom Latham (56,64 balls, 5x4) and a patient 74-ball 48 by opener Devon Conway helped New Zealand score 243/5 in 45.2 overs and win the match by five-wickets claiming the title with a comprehensive victory.
It is nice to win tonight. Different guys stepping up at different times is good. He however played down the impact of this win on the Champions Trophy chances. "It means nothing till we play that first game at the CT.
Santner was particularly happy with the performance of pacer O’Rourke and batter Tom Latham, both of who had struggled in the previous matches.
The pitch was a bit slower than what we thought it would be. We just wanted to put in a good spot and build pressure. If we take wickets upfront, it makes the job easier in the middle. When he (O'Rourke) is swinging the ball like that, he is a problem for batters. The batting powerplay is important. It's always a challenge with the new ball. Dufs [Jacob Duffy] also bowled well.
He is pretty relieved as well. We know how good he is and it was just a matter of time. It was nice for different guys to fire as well.
Pakistan captain Mohammad Rizwan defended his decision to bat first on this pitch and added that the New Zealand bowlers put a squeeze on his batters.
We wanted to bat first because we thought in the second half, the pitch would be tough. But their bowlers put a squeeze on us. We were looking to target 280 but they got it back. We were 15 runs short. They were bowling very well. I and (Salman) Agha were trying to build the stand. We tried doing that, but they were not giving us the balls.
The Pakistan skipper said his wicket was crucial as it shifted the momentum from his team. Rizwan also said his team has to improve its fielding. Pakistan put down some crucial catches that contributed to their downfall.
We have to bring improvement in our fielding. This is one department we are lacking.
Rizwan was disappointed with the result as he wanted Pakistan to go into the Champions Trophy with a victory in the Tri-Series.
