Pakistan To Return Home Midway Through New Zealand Trip? Veteran Drops Bombshell

Pakistan’s former middle-order batter, Basit Ali, has requested the national side to return home after their poor performance in the current New Zealand away series. The Mohammad Rizwan-led side, on the back of their 4-1 T20I series defeat, is behind in the three-match series by a 2-0 unbeatable margin.

This is a repeated poor show from the Green Brigade. They lost the home tri-series final against New Zealand at the start of the year before failing to qualify for the semifinal of the home ICC Champions Trophy with two defeats in three encounters, including one washout fixture.

The most surprising aspect is how the side has struggled after the golden 50-over performance last season when they won three successive bilateral series in Australia, Zimbabwe, and South Africa.

Pakistan’s poor performance against New Zealand in the away bilateral series

Under Salman Ali Agha’s leadership, they started the trip with a nine-wicket defeat as the Blackcaps chased down 92 runs with nine wickets in hand and nearly 10 overs to spare in Christchurch. In the following encounter in Dunedin, they displayed a better batting performance, but that was not enough to save them from another loss.

Also Read: IPL 2025: KKR Playing XI vs SRH- Match 15

At Eden Park in Auckland, it was the only happy day for the Pakistani side in the entire tour. They chased down 207 runs with nine wickets in hand, with four overs to spare. Even in the last two games, the Green Brigade was clinical with their all-around show to earn the series by a 4-1 margin.

The focus shifted to the ODI format as the veteran players, including Babar Azam, returned to the side. At Napier, they got a good start in the 345-run chase but at the end fell short by 73 runs. It could have been a bizarre performance for them at the Seddon Park in Hamilton if the lower order hadn’t contributed to the batting.

Basit Ali is furious at Pakistan’s performance in New Zealand

The former batter, Basit Ali, expressed his disappointment with the side’s performance and reckoned that the team betrayed the fans and the people. He also questioned the old-fashioned style of cricket they had been playing in New Zealand.

“Pakistan team has betrayed us. I don't know what era of cricket we are playing. Pakistan made a strong comeback after Mitchell's dismissal, but poor captaincy. This is not a Pakistan team; that's all I can say.” Ali said in a video uploaded on his YouTube channel.

Out of the six top-order batters of the side, only Tayyab Tahir was able to hit the double-digit mark. At the same time, the rest settled for a single-digit score.

Only Faheem Ashraf counterattacked with 73 runs, while Naseem Shah put up a show with a half-century. They ended up with 208 runs on the board as the Kiwis collected an 84-run defeat.

Basit Ali laughs at Pakistan’s top order to request them to return home

Ali mocked the batters of the side and requested them to return home without playing the last game to save the fans from further embarrassment.

Also Read: IPL 2025: KKR vs SRH Weather And Pitch Report Of Eden Gardens, Kolkata- Match 15

“The Bradmans from one to six were in single digits apart from Tayyab Tahir. I feel that instead of playing the third match, they should say, 'You win, so let us go back to our home; we are homesick.' This is New Zealand's C team. I am surprised Naseem Shah didn't play. Pakistan shouldn't have scored 200-plus; we should have packed at 140.” He added.

The final ODI of the series will take place on April 05 at the Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui.