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After losing four matches on the trot, New Zealand finally managed to beat Pakistan in the fifth and final ODI of the series. Batting first, the Kiwis managed to start well in Karachi as opener Will Young hit 87 runs off 91 deliveries to set the tone of the match.

 Later on, skipper Tom Latham added 59 runs off 58 deliveries as New Zealand were looking good in the middle. However, their lower middle order failed to fire in the match once again and that remains a concern as the ODI World Cup is just around the corner.

Mark Chapman is the only player who looked impressive as the 28-year-old hit 43 runs off 33 deliveries. Courtesy of his impactful knock, the Black Caps posted 299 runs in the first innings and with that, they were probably 30 runs short, since the matches in Karachi always prove to be a high-scoring encounter.

Nevertheless, New Zealand bowlers stepped up big time as pacer Henry Shipley wreaked havoc in the middle, picking up three wickets. Meanwhile, it was Matt Henry who gave the first breakthrough to the visiting team on May 7.

Henry dismissed Shan Masood for seven while Shipley got the better of Babar Azam in the ninth over of the match. Opener Fakhar Zaman once again managed to start well but this time Rachin Ravindra sent him back to the pavilion when he was batting on 33. Mohammad Rizwan too couldn’t make any such impact as Pakistan were under tremendous pressure.

However, Agha Salman and Iftikhar Ahmad stepped up and played some brilliant cricket to bail Pakistan out of a difficult situation. Salman managed to score 57 runs off 57 deliveries while Iftikhar hit 94* runs off just 72 deliveries. Their valiant effort however went in vain as New Zealand managed to win the match by 47 runs. Courtesy of his brilliant bowling, Shipley was named the Player of the Match.