Glenn Phillips’ whirlwind and unbeaten 74-ball 106, along with fifties from Daryl Mitchell (81) and Kane Williamson (58), powered New Zealand to a staggering 330-6 in the tri-nation series opener at the newly revamped Gaddafi Stadium on Saturday.
Opting to bat first, the Black Caps faced an early hiccup, losing the openers (Will Young 4; Rachin Ravindra 25) for just 39. But New Zealand batting maestro Kane Williamson played a resilient knock, studded with seven boundaries.
Daryl Mitchell treated the Pakistan bowlers with great contempt, clobbering two boundaries and four sixes to provide an impetus to the visitors’ innings.
Tom Latham could not trouble the scorecard and was dismissed without troubling the scorecard off Haris Rauf’s delivery.
But it was Phillips who turned the tide for New Zealand, smashing six boundaries and seven sixes.
Mitchell Bracewell played one boundary and three sixes.
Skipper Santner remained unbeaten on a 5-ball 8.
For Pakistan, Abrar Ahmed (2-41) was the pick of the bowlers in terms of economy rate and bagged two crucial wickets.
Shaheen Shah Afridi turned out to be quite expensive with the ball, despite picking up three wickets. Afridi conceded 81 runs in 10 overs.
Haris Rauf (1-21) took a scalp and was looking good with the ball, but he left the field due to rib pain.
Salman Ali Agha (0-31), Naseem Shah (0-70), and Khushdil Shah (0-66) remained wicketless.
