Pakistan vs New Zealand 2023 limited-overs cricket series is happening with lots of excitement. Pakistan is hosting yet another home series at home. Black Caps is touring Pakistan for the second time in such a short span of time. Lots of eyes are on Babar Azam as he approaches the series vs New Zealand with many challenges. If we talk about the statistics, Babar Azam is one of the finest players in modern-era cricket. He has all shots in his cricketing textbook to dominate the opposition. This is why Babar Azam vs New Zealand 2023 would be a contest to watch out!
From a scintillating straight-drive, beautiful cover-drive and spectacular pull shot, Babar Azam is just a wonderful batsman to watch. He approaches the innings in ODI cricket in a terrific way. Babar has not yet played 100 ODI thus far. The cricket fans surely want to witness more of Babar Azam.
New Zealand Cricket Team is here to play five One Day Internationals and five T20 internationals. Babar Azam is the skipper of both teams. In Pakistan vs Afghanistan T20 series, the captain was Shadab Khan in the absence of Babar Azam. As Babar has made a comeback to the side, he will be performing the leadership job. There is no doubt that Babar is a terrific player and he hits the shots amazingly well. It would be interesting to see how Babar Azam would be able to cope against the bowling attack of the Black Caps. He has the support of terrific batsmen at the top order. He would like to continue his momentum in the ODI cricket.
Babar Azam vs New Zealand 2023: Return of Number One ODI Batter
If we look at the rankings, Babar Azam is the number one ODI batsman in the world. He has scored runs all over the world to demonstrate his command in the format of 50 overs cricket. He plays the innings wonderfully well to put pressure on the opposition. We do expect some great knocks from Babar Azam vs New Zealand in the ODI series.
The thing about Babar Azam is that he struggled to convert his big double-figure score to three figures. He has scored big without any shadow of a doubt. He looked really set on the crease. However, Babar failed to carry his form toward the 100. The home series against New Zealand is a big opportunity for Babar Azam to continue from where he left off. He currently averages 55+ in ODI cricket. More ODI games mean that we will get to watch Babar Azam in more matches. This is a treat for cricket fans.
New Zealand is playing with the second-string team vs Pakistan in limited-overs cricket. The reason is the inclusion of players in the Indian Premier League who are currently playing the biggest domestic T20 competition in the world. This does not mean that Babar would not be up for a big challenge. There are still some promising bowlers on the side of Babar Azam who can perform amazingly well on the ground. Babar Azam needs to hit them well.
The Challenge of Captaincy
Captaincy is a big challenge in limited-overs cricket. Especially, the event of the ODI World Cup 2023 is approaching. Pakistan needs to set up its combination. Furthermore, there is a burden of bad track records in the recent time. Pakistan has failed to perform spectacularly well at home. This is why cricket at home has turned out to be a big challenge for Pakistan. Babar Azam is getting the chance to lead the side in the home conditions. It is a great opportunity for the cricketer to take full use of the home condition and perform well on the ground.
There are many loopholes in the squad currently. Pakistan does not have the services of really fine hard hitters on the side. The modern-era cricket demands players in the final overs who can smash the ball all around the park. However, Pakistan can cover this weakness by having a really great top order. Babar Azam can perform the job of playing really long innings in the ODI format. Imam ul Haq and Fakhar Zaman can accompany Babar. With the big scores from the top order, Pakistan can cover the spot of the lower-order batter.
The captaincy of Babar Azam vs New Zealand in the 2023 series is really important. Especially, the win in the ODI series is far more important. if Babar Azam manages to win the series vs Black Caps, it would be a treat for the Pakistan fans. It is really important to win the series to gain momentum ahead of the huge games. The game vs India is really difficult. Australia is not easy either. Pakistan needs great preparation ahead of the event to excel at the hugest event.
The Chances for Youngsters
The chances for youngsters are really significant ahead of ODI World Cup 2023. Pakistan needs to make sure that they have enough variety on the bench. The players should be ready in case some of the main players don’t perform. Well, if look at the batting department, there are options like Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique and Saud Shakeel who can go to India for the World Cup.
Saim Ayub is a really great talent. He has performed exceptionally well during Pakistan Super League for Peshawar Zalmi. The best thing about the inclusion of Saim Ayub in Peshawar Zalmi was the captaincy of Babar Azam. Saim has played with the best player in modern-era cricket. Saim had some rough kind of outings out there in some of the international games.
Try Saim Ayub and Usama Mir
According to some cricket experts, Saim might not be ready for the big stage. This is why he should play more domestic cricket to be ready for international cricket. However, Saim has shown great potential while smashing the ball all around the park in T20 cricket. This is the stage of ODI Cricket. It requires cricketers who can stay on the crease. A series like Pakistan vs New Zealand can prove to be a great opportunity for Pakistan to test players like Saim Ayub who are phenomenal.
As far as the spin-bowling department is concerned, Babar can surely try Usama Mir. Mir bowls really well in the longer formats. Well, there is no doubt that Pakistan has many options in the spin bowling department. There is Shadab Khan who is the main spin bowler of the Pakistan bowling attack. On the other hand, Imad Wasim bowls really well to contain the runs in ODI cricket.
Furthermore, Nawaz has proved out be a wonderful bowler in recent times. With all those options, it becomes difficult to test your bench strength. But trying Usama Mir can really help out Pakistan. He has different kinds of varieties to struggle with the batsmen of opposition. He trapped Kane Williamson amazingly in the ODI cricket.
Babar Azam vs New Zealand 2023: The Big Hundreds
We have witnessed many hundreds from Babar Azam. However, we are awaiting a really big hundred from Babar Azam. What about the number one batsman playing a knock of 190 runs vs New Zealand during the home series in 2023? The fans want that kind of innings from Babar ahead of the World Cup. Babar could not convert his last 5 fifties to hundreds.
He is a player who can play really big knocks. One of the best knocks of Babar Azam came vs New Zealand in ODI World Cup 2019. It was the biggest stage. Pakistan was on the verge of elimination. Babar scored an amazing hundred. He proved to be the best player of the ODI World Cup 2019. With another mega event approaching, Babar Azam can prepare himself for the huge challenge. In the series vs New Zealand in 2023. two hundred by Babar Azam would be really great to watch for cricket fans.
The best players take full advantage of the home conditions. The competitor of Babar Azam, Virat Kohli has scored many hundreds at home. Babar Azam can surely perform the same job in the home conditions. He is one of the most reliable batters out there. He plays really beautiful shots. Pakistan fans would love big hundreds from him.
Conclusion
Babar Azam has returned to international cricket after taking a rest in the series vs Afghanistan. He is the main pillar of the Pakistan batting side. He is the best batsman in ODI cricket. However, he needs to rectify issues in his captaincy. He needs to make some clever bowling changes during the crunch situations. In recent times, Pakistan has lost many matches from the winning position.
At one point, Pakistan is almost winning the contest. But during the crunch moments, the side seems to crumble. Babar Azam needs to lead the side from the front and use his bowlers well. There is no doubt that Pakistan has the best bowling attack in the world. With all these options, Pakistan is surely a favorite side to win the World Cup.
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