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Cricket

New Zealand vs. Pakistan 2020-21 || 1st Test || Match Prediction and Match Tips

New Zealand vs. Pakistan 2020-21

1st Test – Sat, 26th December

NZ vs. Pak Match Prediction:         

The first Test between New Zealand and Pakistan starts on 26th December, Saturday at the Bay Oval Stadium in Mount Maunganui. After a comprehensively entertaining T20I series, it’s time for New Zealand and Pakistan to change colour clothing for the old-fashioned classic whites.

Pakistan, without the services of their skipper Babar Azam, will be led by wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Rizwan. In spite of having a moderately inexperienced batting roster, match tips infer Pakistan’s forte lies in their powerful bowling lineup led by Mohammad Abbas. With young Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah in their roster, today match prediction reckons the guests will fancy their odds in the series.

Meanwhile, hosts The Black Caps come into this campaign based on a spectacular series victory against the West Indies and the T20 series win against Pakistan. Captain Kane Williamson and the bowlers were on fluent song in that series, which should hold them on the right foot before their encounter against Pakistan as per the betting tips.

Although the hosts are the picks to come out on best, Pakistan cannot be undervalued at any cost, something the Blackcaps would have well-read in the last game of the T20I series. With treasured Test championship points on the cards, today match predictions envisage both sides should give their finest in what assures an exciting game of Test cricket at the Bay Oval.

New Zealand will win this game.

Team Preview:

Mohammad Rizwan’s appointment as the captain might not be the nastiest thing to happen to the Pakistani cricket side, considering that they were regularly blameworthy of upcoming games hesitantly under Azhar Ali. Today match prediction says the Pakistan cricket team, and they’ve often strained to become an ensemble that people can decode.

New Zealand Cricket management has confirmed that leg spinner Ish Sodhi and opening batsman Martin Guptill had grieved injuries, and their services will be missed. The Black Caps shall be poised, and with a more balanced core team, as said by the match tips, they should not be wary of any injury issues.

The venue, Pitch Report, and Toss Prediction:

The wicket at the Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui, is decent for the batters, but it is adequate for the pace bowlers. With an additional bounce and considerable swing on the offer, batters will need to spend their time on the field before playing their hits. Match tips infer the spin bowlers could come into proceedings as the game advances, which could make for quite an exhilarating encounter. Given the bowler-friendly circumstances on the cards, today match prediction reckons both sides will ideally want to bowl in the first innings after winning the toss.

Key Players to watch:

Fawad Alam, Mohammad Abbas and Shan Masood of the Pakistani team will be key players to watch out for in this game as per the match tips.

While betting tips suggest that captain Kane Williamson, veteran batsman Ross Taylor and Trent Boult from the New Zealand team will be vital players in this game.