'Everything came off the middle' - de Grandhomme
Colin de Grandhomme was the star of the show in his first match for New Zealand since the passing of his father, smashing 74 from 40 deliveries to take his team to a five-wicket victory and put the Black Caps 4-0 up in the series.
Walking in to bat at 154/5 in pursuit of 263, the all-rounder, who had played no part in the series up to this point due to his family bereavement, struck seven fours and five sixes in a brutal, match-winning innings.
“I felt like I’d been hitting well in the nets," said de Grandhomme after being named Player of the Match. "It was crucial for Henry [Nicholls, who finished 52 not out] to be there till the end. Everything seemed to be coming off the middle.”
It made it 11 victories on the trot for New Zealand across all formats, and the hosts will now look to complete a 5-0 whitewash. It was also 10 straight ODI victories for New Zealand against Pakistan.
Pakistan had made 262/8 from their 50 overs after a shaky start that saw them lose two wickets only for 11 runs. Mohammad Hafeez top-scored with an 80-ball 81, while Fakhar Zaman, Haris Sohail and Sarfraz Ahmed also struck half-centuries.
“We are very disappointed but there were a few positives,” said Pakistan's captain Sarfraz Ahmed. “The way we finished [with the bat] we had lots of confidence, but de Grandhomme played like a great batsman. It was a great innings.”
New Zealand captain Kane Williamson, who bowled 10 overs for only the second time in his ODI career, picking up two wickets, said: “Pakistan played well. They stacked up some pressure with the bat early on and posted a comfortable score. We did not put up the smartest of batting performances until Colin came out. To see him play like that was special.
“We didn’t think the surface took as much turn as we thought it would," he added. "A lot of credit goes to the top of the order as well. They got us off to a good start in the chase. And then Colin just came in and finished it off. We were under pressure for large parts of the batting innings, so it feels nice to get across the line.”