Pakistan's 115-Run Collapse: Same Old Story Against New Zealand
By: Fahad Younis - March 23, 2025, 10:36 a.m.
And just like that, we're back down to Earth. Pakistan lost the 4th T20I against New Zealand by 115 runs. After all the excitement and faint hope from the previous games, this one brought us crashing down. No fight, no resilience — just the same old story. It's like we’re stuck in a loop of disappointment. Every time you think things might turn around, they somehow find a new way to crumble. New Zealand didn't just beat us; they completely humiliated us. And what's worse? It never even felt like we were in the game. It’s one thing to lose, but to collapse so dramatically is a different kind of embarrassment. How many more wake-up calls do we need before something changes?
What will it take for Shaheen to get dropped? Surely we can't do worse than this — do we not have anyone who can come in and bowl better? Just play Jahandad, or Sufiyan. At this point, it doesn't even matter who we bring in, but just get this guy out of the team.
Agha at the toss said it looks like an Asian kind of wicket. I assume that's why we bowled Khushdil and Abrar inside the power play. The experiment didn't pay off as Khushdil went for 12 in his first over, and Abrar went for 19 in his first over and 35 from his first two. It looked like a good batting pitch, so I can't blame the bowlers too much. Although, having seen Pakistan's batting later I have to say the pitch was actually pretty good for fast bowlers.
I was looking at Shadab's career figures when he came on to bowl. 108 matches and 108 wickets. That is atrocious for someone who's been our main spin bowler for the last 8 years or so. Where did we go wrong with this guy? He was so promising when he emerged onto the scene around 2017. He's conceded 36 from his first two, going one run worse than Abrar.
Speaking of Abrar, he bowled well in his last two overs, taking 2 wickets for only 6 runs. Maybe the conditions favored spin later, or the fall of wickets pressured the NZ middle order. Still, 4 overs for 41 with 2 wickets is not great. Shadab and Shaheen both went 4 for 49. But of course, they'll walk straight back into the team for the next match. Haris Rauf was the pick of the bowlers, 4 overs for 27 and 3 wickets. Could have had 4 if Shaheen didn't drop the catch off the last ball of Harris's spell.
Mohammad Haris got a good ball when he got out. Nawaz was back to his wild swinging. There's not much to say about our batting. Back to our usual selves. Granted their bowling was good, but to collapse like this is typical of our batting. Also, did we fail to read the conditions again? We were bowling with two spinners in the power play, thinking that it's a spinning track. New Zealand only bowled their pacers in the power play and got 5 wickets. Maybe our bowlers are just not good enough. Or is it our batting? A bit of both?
I saw a lot of people were comparing Nawaz to Babar, saying things like "this 100 is better than Babar's whole career". I just don't understand the hatred these people have for Babar. When Nawaz has had a full career like Babar, then you can compare the two. I know Babar hasn't achieved anything in the ICC tournaments, but he has been your best batter overall. People talk about intent, saying Babar only plays selfish innings. But what have the other batters achieved in the same period? Again, I'm not defending Babar for his failures in the tournaments. You can criticise him for that. You can criticise him for his decision making when he was captain. But there's a difference between criticism and abuse. Why do we single him out? What has Shaheen done in the last 3 or so years? Consistently conceding 60+ 70+ 80+ in ODIs, and 40+ in T20Is. Yet he's always in the team.
In the end, it was a mixture of misreading the conditions, bad bowling and inexperienced batting. Still, it's early days as captain for Agha and this new team. We need to support them and see where we are once they've played 2-3 series together. Let's see how we get on in the last match of the series. Until then, let's hope for a better performance.
Fahad Younis
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I'm not a cricket expert, nor am I a professional writer—I’m just a passionate fan of Pakistan cricket. From thrilling victories to heartbreaking losses, I follow the team through every high and low. Stumps and Dugout is my space to share thoughts, reactions, and analysis from a fan’s perspective. Whether it’s squad selections, match performances, or just the unpredictable nature of Pakistan cricket, I’m here to talk about it all.
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