Pakistan team arrive in Christchurch for upcoming bilateral series against New Zealand

The Pakistani team led by batting sensation Babar Azam has landed in Christchurch for the upcoming bilateral series against New Zealand that gets underway on December 18. In fact, the Men In Green had departed in the early hours of Monday for their month-long tour of New Zealand. Meanwhile, it has also been learned that upon reaching, the ICC Champions Trophy holders will be under a mandatory 14-day quarantine period as per COVID-19 protocol.

'Reach Christchurch'

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) posted a few images of their players and support staff after they had landed Down Under. The likes of young pacer Naseem Shah, Test batting specialist Azhar Ali, and, batting coach Younis Khan was clicked at the Christchurch airport. PCB went on to caption the image as 'Pakistan team and Pakistan Shaheens reach Christchurch'.

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Pakistan tour of New Zealand 2020/21

New Zealand will be hosting Pakistan in three-match T20I series that will be followed by two Test matches in December & January. The T20I matches will be played on December 18, 20 and, 22 at Eden Park, Auckland, Seddon Park, Hamilton, and, Napier's McLean Park respectively.

The focus then shifts to the game's longest format with the first Test being played at the Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui on 'Boxing Day' (December 26-30) and the final match of the series will be played at the Christchurch (January 3-7).  

The two-match Test series will form part of the inaugural 2019–21 ICC World Test Championship.

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Can Pakistan make an impact in New Zealand?

The 1992 World Cup winners have had a few forgettable overseas tours so far. It all happened back in early 2019 when the Men In Green failed to win even a single series during their tour of South Africa. They were defeated by Australia in both the T20I as well as the Test series Down Under later that year.

Things did not end there as the 2017 Champions Trophy winners lost the Test series against England 1-0 this year and managed a consolation win by emerging triumphant in the series-deciding T20I earlier this year. 

However, Babar Azam & Co. will be looking to make a statement as a visiting team in the upcoming series. During their last visit to the country in the 2017/18 season, they suffered a 4-1 humiliation in the five-match series but came back strongly by clinching the three-match T20I series 2-1.

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