Big Picture: Can Pakistan stop New Zealand's charge?

If this new-look Pakistan side wants to keep the five-match T20I series alive in Auckland on Friday, they need to step up on all fronts and prove to the world - and even perhaps to themselves - that it's not all doom and gloom with less than a year to go for the next T20 World Cup.

New Zealand have not had much to worry about so far; their bowlers have worked like a well-oiled machine in favourable conditions and even though they put down three catches in the first match, they have held on to 18.

Pakistan will also be desperate to lift their hopes after a forgettable home Champions Trophy campaign and put an end to their five-match losing streak in T20Is, which started in Zimbabwe in December last year.

New Zealand WWLWW (last five completed T20Is, most recent first)
Pakistan LLLLL

In the spotlight: James Neesham and Hasan Nawaz

Since it's a five-match series and there was a quick turnaround between the first two games, New Zealand rested Kyle Jamieson and Tim Robinson to bring in Ben Sears and Jimmy Neesham for the second match. They could bring Jamieson back and rest Jacob Duffy for the third game.

New Zealand (probable): 1 Tim Seifert, 2 Finn Allen, 3 Mark Chapman, 4 Daryl Mitchell, 5 James Neesham, 6 Mitchell Hay (wk), 7 Michael Bracewell (capt), 8 Zakary Foulkes, 9 Ish Sodhi, 10 Kyle Jamieson, 11 Jacob Duffy/Ben Sears

Pakistan changed the mix of their bowling attack to pick fast bowler Haris Rauf for legspinner Abrar Ahmed for the second match. Mohammad Ali has been expensive in both games, leaking nearly 12 runs in both games put together. Abbas Afridi is the one option in their squad if they wish to replace Ali.

Pakistan (probable): 1 Mohammad Haris (wk), 2 Hasan Nawaz, 3 Salman Agha (capt), 4 Irfan Khan, 5 Shadab Khan, 6 Khushdil Shah, 7 Abdul Samad, 8 Jahandad Khan, 9 Shaheen Afridi, 10 Abrar Ahmed, 11 Mohammad Ali

Even though New Zealand bowled in the first two games and won both, the last four matches (barring a tie between New Zealand and Sri Lanka in 2023) in Auckland were won by teams batting first. Eden Park in general is known as a high-scoring ground and with no rain predicted for Friday, and temperatures expected to dip below 20 degrees at night, the crowd should be entertained for a full 40 overs.