(Reuters) – Paceman Trent Boult took four wickets as New Zealand beat Pakistan by an innings and 80 runs to win the third and final test within four days and level the series 1-1.
Pakistan, who won the first match of the series in Abu Dhabi by 248 runs, were all out for 259 in their second innings in Sharjah yesterday.
Asad Shafiq staged a lone battle for Pakistan and completed his fifth test hundred with an aggressive 137 off 148 balls but ran out of partners in the end.
“Really tough circumstances to play the test match here,” New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum said at the presentation ceremony, referring to the death of Australian cricketer Phillip Hughes on Thursday.
“Our thoughts were elsewhere for majority of the game. When we look back at this result in due course we will obviously be very proud.”
On a docile pitch at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium where New Zealand posted their highest total in tests, the 25-year-old Boult extracted enough movement and pace to rattle the Pakistan top order.
Boult dismissed Shan Masood (4) in the third over, bowled Azhar Ali (6) with the last delivery of his fourth and then returned to dismiss Younus Khan for a duck leg before with the first ball of his next over.
Off-spinner Mark Craig, who took seven wickets in the first innings, continued to punish Pakistan by dismissing opener Mohammad Hafeez and captain Misbah-ul-Haq.
With Pakistan reeling on 63-5, Sarfraz Ahmed (37) decided to take the attack to the New Zealand bowlers and added a quickfire 73 for the sixth wicket with Shafiq.
But leg-spinner Ish Sodhi, who saw Sarfraz dropped twice off his bowling in one over, took out the wicketkeeper-batsman and Yasir Shah (10) to take New Zealand closer to victory.
The 28-year-old Shafiq smashed 18 fours and six sixes in his knock and added 78 for the ninth wicket with Rahat Ali to delay New Zealand’s celebration. He fell to Boult.
Rahat was the last man out and gave Craig his 10th wicket in the match.
Former New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori, who returned to tests for the first time since July 2012, also chipped in with a wicket in what could be his last match in the format.
Earlier in the morning, New Zealand’s first innings closed on 690 with Craig (65) becoming the sixth batsman to score at least a half-century in the innings.
The visitors hit 22 sixes in total, another record for the most number of maximums in a test innings.
Paceman Rahat and leg-spinner Yasir Shah picked up four wickets each for Pakistan, while part-time off-spinner Hafeez, who was reported for an illegal action after the first test in Abu Dhabi, took the remaining two wickets.
Scoreboard
Pakistan 1st innings 351 (M. Hafeez 197; M. Craig 7-94)
New Zealand 1st innings (Overnight: 637-8)
T. Latham c S. Ahmed b R. Ali 13
B. McCullum b Shah 202
K. Williamson c Y. Khan b R. Ali 192
R. Taylor c Y. Khan b Shah 50
C. Anderson c Shah b R. Ali 50
D. Vettori lbw b R. Ali 15
B. Watling lbw b Hafeez 8
M. Craig c&b Hafeez 65
T. Southee c Talha b Shah 50
I. Sodhi c Y. Khan b Shah 22
T. Boult not out 0
Extras (b-2 lb-7 nb-6 w-8) 23
Total (all out, 143.1 overs) 690
Fall of wickets: 1-51 T. Latham,2-348 B. McCullum,3-464 R. Taylor,4-488 K. Williamson,5-528 D. Vettori,6-537 C. Anderson,7-546 B. Watling,8-637 T. Southee,9-682 M. Craig,10-690 I. Sodhi
Bowling M. Talha 22 – 2 – 136 – 0(nb-6 w-1) R. Ali 29 – 2 – 99 – 4(w-2) Z. Babar 23 – 1 – 135 – 0 Y. Shah 44.1 – 4 – 193 – 4 M. Hafeez 23 – 2 – 110 – 2(w-1) Az. Ali 2 – 0 – 8 – 0
Pakistan 2nd innings
M. Hafeez c&b Craig 24
S. Masood c Southee b Boult 4
Az. Ali b Boult 6
Y. Khan lbw b Boult 0
Misbah-ul-Haq c Watling b Craig 12
A. Shafiq c Craig b Boult 137
S. Ahmed c Taylor b Sodhi 37
Y. Shah lbw b Sodhi 10
M. Talha lbw b Vettori 19
R. Ali c B. McCullum b Craig 6
Z. Babar not out 0
Extras (lb-2 nb-1 w-1) 4
Total (all out, 63.3 overs) 259
Fall of wickets: 1-13 S. Masood,2-20 Az. Ali,3-24 Y. Khan,4-36 M. Hafeez,5-63 Misbah-ul-Haq,6-136 S. Ahmed,7-146 Y. Shah,8-180 M. Talha,9-258 A. Shafiq,10-259 R. Ali To bat:
Bowling T. Boult 15 – 6 – 38 – 4 T. Southee 11 – 3 – 20 – 0(w-1) M. Craig 20.3 – 2 – 109 – 3 D. Vettori 5 – 2 – 8 – 1(nb-1) I. Sodhi 12 – 0 – 82 – 2 Referees Umpire: Paul Reiffel
Umpire: Rod Tucker
TV umpire: Ranmore Martinesz
Match referee: Andy Pycroft
Result: New Zealand won by an innings and 80 runs
