PAK vs NZ Match Preview- Match 1, ICC Champions Trophy 2025

The ICC Champions Trophy 2025 will get underway this week. Hosts Pakistan will be facing New Zealand in the first game of the tournament. The game is scheduled to be played at the National Stadium in Karachi on Wednesday (February 19).

The game takes place just over a week after Pakistan and New Zealand locked horns against each other in the final of the ODI tri-series. New Zealand thrashed Pakistan by five wickets to clinch the series. Earlier during the league stage too, New Zealand had inflicted a heavy defeat on Pakistan, beating them by 78 runs.

With New Zealand and Pakistan now all set to take on each other in the Champions Trophy opener, here is the match preview.

PAK vs NZ Match Preview- Match 1, ICC Champions Trophy 2025:

PAK vs NZ Date and Venue:

The upcoming PAK vs NZ ODI will be played on Wednesday (February 19) at the National Stadium in Karachi. The match will be played from 02:30 PM (IST).

Squads:

Pakistan:

Mohammad Rizwan (c), Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir, Faheem Ashraf, Khushdil Shah, Salman Ali Agha, Usman Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi

New Zealand:

Mitchell Santner (c), Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Will O’Rourke, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Nathan Smith, Kane Williamson, Will Young, Jacob Duffy

PAK vs NZ key battles:

Devon Conway vs Shaheen Afridi:

The onus will be on Devon Conway and Shaheen Afridi to give their respective teams a good start with the bat and ball respectively. The battle between Conway and Afridi could very well set the tone for the remainder of the match.

Conway looked in brilliant touch during the tri-series. After missing the first game of the tri-series, he impressed with the bat in the next two games. In his first game of the series, he scored 97 runs against South Africa before scoring 48 runs against Pakistan in the final. Recently, he also scored 66 runs against Afghanistan in the warm-up game.

With Conway in good form, Pakistan will be relying on their pace spearhead Afridi to take his wicket. Afridi can trouble any batsman with the new ball and he will be keen to win the battle against Conway.

Kane Williamson vs Abrar Ahmed:

Kane Williamson was also in good form during the tri-series. The former New Zealand captain finished the series as the second-highest run-scorer, scoring 225 runs with the help of a century and a fifty.

He can single-handedly bat Pakistan out of the game. The Men in Green will be hoping that their spin spearhead Abrar Ahmed manages to win his battle against Williamson.

Mohammad Rizwan vs Mitchell Santner:

Pakistan captain Mohammad Rizwan will be keen to lead his team from the front in his first ICC tournament as a captain. Rizwan was in good form during the tri-series, scoring 171 runs in 3 games.

Rizwan can win the game single-handedly and the onus will be on his New Zealand counterpart Mitchell Santner to stop him. Santner picked up 5 wickets in the tri-series and will be eyeing Rizwan's prized scalp during the upcoming game.

PAK vs NZ Key Players

PAK - Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Rizwan, Salman Agha, and Shaheen Afridi will be the key players for Pakistan.

NZ - Kane Williamson, Devon Conway, Daryl Mitchell, Mitchell Santner, and William ORourke will be the key players for New Zealand.

PAK vs NZ Weather And Pitch Report:

The upcoming PAK vs NZ match is unlikely to be interrupted by weather conditions as there is no forecast for rain. The temperature will be hovering in the 20s throughout the game. Talking about the pitch, it is expected to assist the batsmen more than the bowlers.

Conclusion:

New Zealand recently beat Pakistan twice in the tri-series and will be fancying their chances of beating them again. On the other hand, Pakistan will be desperate to turn things around and beat the Black Caps to start their campaign on a good note.