When will Pakistan next win a Test series against New Zealand?

[HappyWarsFan]

Looking ahead to our tour of NZ later this year, this is an issue that I noticed.

Last time Pakistan beat New Zealand in a Test series was in 2011, 9 years ago.

I remember back in May 2014, looking at Pakistan's overall test record against each team, and I remember Pakistan having an amazing record, with 23 wins and 7 losses overall. I was very impressed then, and that made me confident for that 2014 test series in UAE. Now it's gone haywire since then, and I believe our record now stands at 25 wins and 12 losses.

In the UAE in 2014, we demolished NZ in the first Test. The second test was a draw, although we could have chased the target of 260 had we batted a little faster.
However, the third test was an embarrassment. How we conceded 690 in UAE to a then weak NZ side, I have no idea. A series that could have easily ended 3-0 or 2-1 in favour of us ended at 1-1.

Fast forward to the tour of NZ in 2016. The first test we got soundly beat, fair enough. But the second test was a shame - it could have easily ended in a draw, had we just blocked out the last session instead of going for the target. Instead, we fell to a 2-0 defeat which could have easily been a respectable 1-0 loss.

Finally, in UAE 2018. The first and third test could have easily been won had the batsmen been more responsible. To be specific, in the third test, Sarfraz's poor captaincy cost it and we let NZ run away with the game after being a position in control. A series that could have easily been won 3-0 ended as 1-2.

Are Pakistan developing a possible mental block vs. New Zealand? I sure hope not. And will they by a miracle be able to break that losing streak by the end of the year?

 

[Xoib]

Newzeland we have done historically to get our mojo back in SNA we have to start winning in nz first as we have a history of doing well there.

 

[Mamoon]

There is no mental block, New Zealand are a superior team. We had the wood over the for a very long time because we were better then.

We drew the 2014 series because New Zealand dragged us out of our comfort-zone by winning the toss and batting first in the second Test.

We thrashed them as well as Australia by batting first in all three Tests, but as soon as we finally lost the toss and New Zealand scored 400+, we panicked.

By the end of day 5 they looked like the side with momentum, which they carried into the third Test.

Pakistan has no hope of doing well in New Zealand this time as well. A whitewash is on the cards.

At the moment we are only capable of beating Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and maybe West Indies away from home.

 

[pratiktc]

NZ is man to man better side than Pak in their home conditions and with seasoned bowling attack.

Best chance for Pak is if wkts are bowling friendly. The truer the wkts are, lack of quality spinner and 5th bowler will be exploited badly.

But in a shoot-out pitch, one 5-star spell and a hundred from Babar can be enough to nick a Test

 

[Sher Khan]

There is no mental block, New Zealand are a superior team. We had the wood over the for a very long time because we were better then.

We drew the 2014 series because New Zealand dragged us out of our comfort-zone by winning the toss and batting first in the second Test.

We thrashed them as well as Australia by batting first in all three Tests, but as soon as we finally lost the toss and New Zealand scored 400+, we panicked.

By the end of day 5 they looked like the side with momentum, which they carried into the third Test.

Pakistan has no hope of doing well in New Zealand this time as well. A whitewash is on the cards.

At the moment we are only capable of beating Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and maybe West Indies away from home.

Dont speak too soon. Shaheen and Naseem Shah could wreak havoc in Nz. Babar Azam is also part of the Fab Four now and could score daddy tons there.

 

[MMHS]

There is no mental block, New Zealand are a superior team. We had the wood over the for a very long time because we were better then.

We drew the 2014 series because New Zealand dragged us out of our comfort-zone by winning the toss and batting first in the second Test.

We thrashed them as well as Australia by batting first in all three Tests, but as soon as we finally lost the toss and New Zealand scored 400+, we panicked.

By the end of day 5 they looked like the side with momentum, which they carried into the third Test.

Pakistan has no hope of doing well in New Zealand this time as well. A whitewash is on the cards.

At the moment we are only capable of beating Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and maybe West Indies away from home.

I believe Kiwis won the 3rd Test of 2014 at Sharjah batting 2nd after losing toss and won by innings, after posting ~700 @ 4.5 RR.

But, going forward, they are going to lose some of their best players, particularly against PAK - Ross, CDG, Southee, Wagner... may be Watling as well. Next NZ-PAK series should be a close contest, could be 1-1.

 

[Pakistanian]

I believe Kiwis won the 3rd Test of 2014 at Sharjah batting 2nd after losing toss and won by innings, after posting ~700 @ 4.5 RR.

But, going forward, they are going to lose some of their best players, particularly against PAK - Ross, CDG, Southee, Wagner... may be Watling as well. Next NZ-PAK series should be a close contest, could be 1-1.

There is no mental block, New Zealand are a superior team. We had the wood over the for a very long time because we were better then.

We drew the 2014 series because New Zealand dragged us out of our comfort-zone by winning the toss and batting first in the second Test.

We thrashed them as well as Australia by batting first in all three Tests, but as soon as we finally lost the toss and New Zealand scored 400+, we panicked.

By the end of day 5 they looked like the side with momentum, which they carried into the third Test.

Pakistan has no hope of doing well in New Zealand this time as well. A whitewash is on the cards.

At the moment we are only capable of beating Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and maybe West Indies away from home.

Looking ahead to our tour of NZ later this year, this is an issue that I noticed.

Last time Pakistan beat New Zealand in a Test series was in 2011, 9 years ago.

I remember back in May 2014, looking at Pakistan's overall test record against each team, and I remember Pakistan having an amazing record, with 23 wins and 7 losses overall. I was very impressed then, and that made me confident for that 2014 test series in UAE. Now it's gone haywire since then, and I believe our record now stands at 25 wins and 12 losses.

In the UAE in 2014, we demolished NZ in the first Test. The second test was a draw, although we could have chased the target of 260 had we batted a little faster.
However, the third test was an embarrassment. How we conceded 690 in UAE to a then weak NZ side, I have no idea. A series that could have easily ended 3-0 or 2-1 in favour of us ended at 1-1.

Fast forward to the tour of NZ in 2016. The first test we got soundly beat, fair enough. But the second test was a shame - it could have easily ended in a draw, had we just blocked out the last session instead of going for the target. Instead, we fell to a 2-0 defeat which could have easily been a respectable 1-0 loss.

Finally, in UAE 2018. The first and third test could have easily been won had the batsmen been more responsible. To be specific, in the third test, Sarfraz's poor captaincy cost it and we let NZ run away with the game after being a position in control. A series that could have easily been won 3-0 ended as 1-2.

Are Pakistan developing a possible mental block vs. New Zealand? I sure hope not. And will they by a miracle be able to break that losing streak by the end of the year?

New Zealand got lucky in the 3rd test, I think there was a "reserve day" in the match after Phil Hughes died otherwise Pakistan were on top in the first day or two and then the Kiwis came back after the stop in play. None of the Pakistani bowlers were bowling short balls or seemed like they were enjoying the game since they were still traumatized, so if you guys look at the match within context you'll understand why Pakistan did so poorly.

 

[big_gamer007]

One point which irked me in OP is him calling "Going for a victory to try and level the series, as shameful, compared to losing the series 2-0"

Not sure about that particular match or how it went since I don't follow Pakistan or NZ cricket, however, assuming Pakistan had a chance to win the match and level the series, blaming them for trying for that instead of a draw sounds pretty defeatist and minnow level mindset of fans.

This was all before WTC as well, going for a 1-0 loss when you have chance of going 1-1 would have been a defeatist attitude. Surprised any fan apart from [MENTION=132916]Junaids[/MENTION] will want that.

 

[MMHS]

New Zealand got lucky in the 3rd test, I think there was a "reserve day" in the match after Phil Hughes died otherwise Pakistan were on top in the first day or two and then the Kiwis came back after the stop in play. None of the Pakistani bowlers were bowling short balls or seemed like they were enjoying the game since they were still traumatized, so if you guys look at the match within context you'll understand why Pakistan did so poorly.

No reserve days - the game was bodily shifted from day 2 for the sad incident and the game ended inside scheduled 5 days (on 4th playing day). PAK won the toss and got the first use of Sharjah track... then lost the way on 2nd day (3rd morning) to Mark Craig of all bowlers!!!!! I don't think PAK bowlers were more traumatized than Kiwis for the sad demise of an Aussie cricketer; rather I tend to believe that Kiwis acclimatized better with UAE tracks by the 3rd Test, and batted well; they won the ODI series as well 3-2, from 1-2 down.

 

[Pakistanian]

No reserve days - the game was bodily shifted from day 2 for the sad incident and the game ended inside scheduled 5 days (on 4th playing day). PAK won the toss and got the first use of Sharjah track... then lost the way on 2nd day (3rd morning) to Mark Craig of all bowlers!!!!! I don't think PAK bowlers were more traumatized than Kiwis for the sad demise of an Aussie cricketer; rather I tend to believe that Kiwis acclimatized better with UAE tracks by the 3rd Test, and batted well; they won the ODI series as well 3-2, from 1-2 down.

They abandoned play for a day after Hughe's death, prior to the gap day the match was in the balance but after they returned Pakistani bowlers lost momentum and seem disoriented, this is the problem with people basing their analysis off just the stats and the scorecard, if you watched the game you would've noticed that the Pakistani team were clearly not happy and the bowlers didn't even try to bowl any short deliveries. It doesn't matter if the game "finished within scheduled 5 days", they still missed a whole day of play which is unprecendeted in test cricket and only happened cause of that freak accident. That match was an anomaly and the result shouldn't be given much weight in the overall discussion of Pakistan's record against NZ.

 

[Xoib]

Yes agreed Phil Hughes incident just rocked the cricket world when next day started everyone including nz team did not look they wanted to be there there were even murmers to abondan the game few loose strokes were played and mark Craig suddenly had a 7 fer .

Nz came to bat McCullan decided to thrown kitchen sink Pakistan bowling was completely without energy and in couple of sessions the whole momentum was with them.

I am pretty certain without Phil Huges incident that game would have ended in Pak win or a draw.

 

[Markhor]

I'll never forgive Azhar Ali for that monumental choke in what ought to have been a routine chase in that Abu Dhabi Test.

 

[Pakistanian]

Yes agreed Phil Hughes incident just rocked the cricket world when next day started everyone including nz team did not look they wanted to be there there were even murmers to abondan the game few loose strokes were played and mark Craig suddenly had a 7 fer .

Nz came to bat McCullan decided to thrown kitchen sink Pakistan bowling was completely without energy and in couple of sessions the whole momentum was with them.

I am pretty certain without Phil Huges incident that game would have ended in Pak win or a draw.

Even if Pakistan would've lost I don't think they would've let NZ post 600-700 runs and lost by whole innings. The bizarre and unforeseen circumstances of that test played a huge rule in the outcome.

 

[gazza619]

I disagree to some of the posters here. NZ is not too superior to Pakistan. I think we have developed a mental block over the years.

If it was only a quality issue then Pakistan would have lost every single test in England as well. See we play well against England as we don't have a mental block against them.

 

[MMHS]

They abandoned play for a day after Hughe's death, prior to the gap day the match was in the balance but after they returned Pakistani bowlers lost momentum and seem disoriented, this is the problem with people basing their analysis off just the stats and the scorecard, if you watched the game you would've noticed that the Pakistani team were clearly not happy and the bowlers didn't even try to bowl any short deliveries. It doesn't matter if the game "finished within scheduled 5 days", they still missed a whole day of play which is unprecendeted in test cricket and only happened cause of that freak accident. That match was an anomaly and the result shouldn't be given much weight in the overall discussion of Pakistan's record against NZ.

I have seen almost every ball of that Test, in fact I was active in match thread as well. And, I didn't notice anything that should suggest that PAK team was unhappy while Kiwis were bustling with enthusiasm. In fact, I doubt if you had watched the game, because PAK pacers bowled absolute sh!t with new ball, with most of them short - BMac & Williamson put around 300 in 50 overs!!!!

PAK ended day 1 at 280+ for 3, then lost 7 wickets in first session of Day 2, which was a day later; then Kiwis scored like 250/1 in 2 sessions of Day 2, and close to 400 in Day 3. I am not sure what it had from "missing one whole day" - if anything, it should cost Kiwis more because they were batting second and that wicket got burnt one more day in UAE sun; normal cricket sense should suggest that.

Anyway, that PAK team had YK, Misbah & Hafeez at their prime + Yasir; and Series was still active (1-0 to PAK) before 3rd Test - is there any reason to believe that PAK wasn't interested, once it was decided that the Test will continue?

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

There is no mental block, New Zealand are a superior team. We had the wood over the for a very long time because we were better then.

We drew the 2014 series because New Zealand dragged us out of our comfort-zone by winning the toss and batting first in the second Test.

We thrashed them as well as Australia by batting first in all three Tests, but as soon as we finally lost the toss and New Zealand scored 400+, we panicked.

By the end of day 5 they looked like the side with momentum, which they carried into the third Test.

Pakistan has no hope of doing well in New Zealand this time as well. A whitewash is on the cards.

At the moment we are only capable of beating Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and maybe West Indies away from home.

There is absolutely a mental block because Pakistan is a mentally weak team. Nothing else can explain Pakistan's capitulation at Abu Dhabi last year or the one at Hamilton in 2016, a game that at should have ended in a draw. New Zealand is obviously the superior team but superior teams get beaten by inferior teams all the time. But when the inferior side is so mentally weak then it becomes a walk in the park for the superior side

 

[Hasan123]

We won’t be New Zealand this year. They are a better side and good at beating weak teams at home.

 

[Hawkeye]

NZ have an advantage at their home. Will be a tough series.

We'll absolutely thrash them at our home.

The teams are pretty balanced. No need to overhype them as a superior team - they aren't, they're as good as we are or slightly better because of experienced players. Just got a bad thrashing in Aus.

 

[Nikhil_cric]

It all began with that Sharjah test five years ago. That gap day is just an excuse. The collapse to mark Craig and then some high school level fast bowling by PAK seamers led to that defeat. Did someone say Pakistan didn't bowl short ball s? Lol. Talha bowled plenty of short balls but he couldn't bowl the right line nor did he have the pace to rush Bmac or Kane who smashed him at around 8/9 an over initially.

 

[jnaveen1980]

Pakistan had an upper hand over NZ for a long period due to their quick bowlers. NZ batsmen are allergic to really quick bowlers Especially yorker specialists

 

[HappyWarsFan]

NZ have an advantage at their home. Will be a tough series.

We'll absolutely thrash them at our home.

The teams are pretty balanced. No need to overhype them as a superior team - they aren't, they're as good as we are or slightly better because of experienced players. Just got a bad thrashing in Aus.

Do you think we have a decent chance to at least win 1 test in NZ later this year? Imo we can. Misbah just needs to get rid of Yasir and we should hopefully find 1 more performing middle.order batsman.

 

[HappyWarsFan]

I believe Kiwis won the 3rd Test of 2014 at Sharjah batting 2nd after losing toss and won by innings, after posting ~700 @ 4.5 RR.

But, going forward, they are going to lose some of their best players, particularly against PAK - Ross, CDG, Southee, Wagner... may be Watling as well. Next NZ-PAK series should be a close contest, could be 1-1.

Why do you say so? Our series is at the end of this year and I expect all of those you mentioned to be there.

 

[Space Cat]

Some good excuses in here. NZ were just as effected by the Phil Hughes incident as anybody else they just played better than Pakistan in that game.

 

[Hawkeye]

Some good excuses in here. NZ were just as effected by the Phil Hughes incident as anybody else they just played better than Pakistan in that game.

Yes. Today's NZ is not as good as that one though. Both teams can comfortably beat each other at their respective homes.

 

[Hawkeye]

Do you think we have a decent chance to at least win 1 test in NZ later this year? Imo we can. Misbah just needs to get rid of Yasir and we should hopefully find 1 more performing middle.order batsman.

Winning one Test will be a success. Sounds hard but it's possible with batters like Babar, Abid, possibly Haris if he's back in form.

Bowlers should also do well in those conditions, they're not flat like Aus.

 

[Space Cat]

Yes. Today's NZ is not as good as that one though. Both teams can comfortably beat each other at their respective homes.

Our bowling attack is much better but we would find it tough in Pakistan. In UAE we were only slightly better.

 

[MMHS]

Why do you say so? Our series is at the end of this year and I expect all of those you mentioned to be there.

Wrong side of age. Ross has been like Bradman against Pakistan in ODI and very good at Test as well, but he is struggling these days. Others are getting older into critical age as well. Kiwis have to find one good batsman and one good pacer to support Boult.

 

[jnaveen1980]

In cricket just because you beat a team that beat some other team it doesn't mean you can beat that "some other" team lol It all comes down to strength/weakness match up.

 

[Space Cat]

Devon Conway will likely be brought into the squad for that series and will eventually replace Ross Taylor at 4.