Pakistan made three changes for the third T20I against New Zealand on Wednesday.
Leg-spinner Usama Mir and all-rounder Amir Jamal have been left out of the lineup, while fast bowler Abbas Afridi is ruled out with an abdominal wall muscle strain. His exit will be a big loss for the team as Afridi was the top 5 wicket-taker for the team along with Haris Rauf though he is a lost cause.
Mohammad Wasim Jr., Mohammad Nawaz, and Zaman Khan have replaced the aforementioned trio for Pakistan.
Pakistan defeated by 21 runs
Earlier, fast bowler Adam Milne took four wickets as New Zealand beat Pakistan by 21 runs in the second T20I on Sunday to take a 2-0 lead in the series.
In reply to New Zealand‘s 194-8, the tourists threw away a strong position in their run chase after Babar Azam and Fakhar Zaman scored half-centuries.
The victory came at the expense of the Black Caps, whose captain Kane Williamson retired from bat with a hamstring injury.
Williamson will not participate in the series, coach Gary Stead said Monday.
Williamson was already set to miss the third match on Wednesday, and with the first Test against South Africa less than three weeks away, Stead said his star batsman would miss the final two as well.
“With the Test matches so close and (he’s) a high priority in the grand scheme of things, I think we’ll try and make sure he’s right for it,” Stead said. “
Williamson is expected to replace Tim Seifert in the batting line-up, with Stead indicating that Seifert was already set to replace Dion Conway as wicketkeeper at some stage in the series.
