KARACHI: Pakistan are well on track to become the No.1 ODI team for the very first time after they took an unassailable 3-0 lead in the PAK vs NZ ODI series with two games to spare.
Wins in the remaining two matches on May 5 and 7 will take the Green Shirts to the top of the ICC ODI team rankings which will be a historic first for Pakistan, surpassing their previous best as number three on a number of occasions.
Currently, the Men in Green are placed third on the ICC ODI rankings with 112 rating points, one behind the first and second-ranked Australia and India (113).
With the team in a great vein of form, Babar Azam and company would not be willing to settle down with just a series triumph, which came after a long wait of 12 years against the Blackcaps.
“We have to continue this performance and make it a five-nil,” said Babar in the post-match presentation after Pakistan took the series-deciding victory in the third ODI at the National Bank Cricket Arena in Karachi on Wednesday.
The skipper and opener Imam led the charge for the Green Shirts in yesterday’s encounter as they beat New Zealand by 26 runs after setting a respectable 288-run target.
Imam-ul-Haq smashed seven boundaries and a six on his way to top score for Pakistan with a 107-ball 90.
Babar Azam, on the other hand, was also impressive with the bat as he notched up 54 runs in 62 balls, laced up with three boundaries and a six.
The target set by the green shirts turned out to be too much for New Zealand as they succumbed to their third straight defeat in the ongoing five-match series despite a brilliant start by their openers – Will Young and Tom Blundell.
Blundell remained the top scorer for the touring side with a 78-ball 65, which featured seven boundaries.
Both teams will now take on each other on Friday in the fourth ODI before playing the final ODI on Sunday at the same venue.
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