Pakistan become No. 1 ODI team

 

Pakistan convincingly beat New Zealand by 102 runs in the fourth match of their five-match ODI series. After being put in to bat, Pakistan posted an imposing total of 334 for 6 thanks to Babar Azam's century - his 18th in ODIs - and supporting performances from Salman and Masood. The Pakistani bowlers then put in a ruthless performance to restrict New Zealand to 232 all out, with Mir, Wasim, and Rauf taking multiple wickets each.

New Zealand struggled to keep up with the asking rate from the start of their chase, with Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf putting in a fearsome display in the powerplay. Daryl Mitchell and Tom Latham put on a period of stagnation in the third-wicket stand, scoring runs at a rate of under five, which ultimately harmed New Zealand's chances. Despite a bright passage from Latham and Mark Chapman, who put on 55 runs in 43 balls, New Zealand's resistance melted away and Mir took career-best figures of 4 for 43.

Earlier, Babar's century had set up Pakistan's imposing total, with Salman also contributing a well-played half-century. Despite some resistance from Matt Henry and Ish Sodhi, who took multiple wickets each, Pakistan's middle order did enough to push the total beyond New Zealand's reach.

Pakistan's win puts them up 4-0 in the series and at the top of the ICC rankings for ODI teams.