New Zealand became the first team in the World Twenty20 to book a semi-final spot, winning their third consecutive match in the tournament against Pakistan in Mohali on Tuesday by 22 runs.
Riding on opener Martin Guptill's 48-ball 80, New Zealand posted 180/6 in their 20 overs. At one point, they seemed like they would get over 200 but Guptill's dismissal allowed Pakistan to get back into the game with Mohammad Sami picking up 2/23 in his four overs.
Pakistan got off the blocks quickly, thanks to Sharjeel Khan's quickfire 25-ball 47. However after his dismissal, their innings ground to a halt and never got going again. They failed to rotate the strike and played rash strokes in an effort to catch up with the rising asking rate. Umar Akmal and Ahmed Shehzad were especially guilty of not rotating the strike, both scoring at below run-a-ball in a run chase which required Pakistan to be far more aggressive.
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