New Zealand will face Pakistan in their Super Eight opener at the R. Premadasa Stadium on Saturday. Ahead of the match, Kiwi batter Mark Chapman said Pakistan’s strong spin attack, especially
Usman Tariq, will be a big challenge.
Tariq, 27, has been impressive in the tournament so far. He has taken eight wickets with an excellent economy rate of 5.83 and an average of 8.38. He also claimed four wickets in a match against Namibia during the group stage.
Speaking during a press conference in Colombo on the eve of the match, Chapman said, "I mean obviously Usman Tariq has a pretty unique action with the way that he stops at the crease, so I mean that's something to factor in. Pakistan have a number of really good spinners on their side, so each of them poses their own threat," according to ICC.
Chapman said New Zealand are familiar with Pakistan because the two teams have played each other many times in recent years. He believes the Kiwis know what to expect and are focused on sticking to their own game plan.
"Pakistan's one of the teams that we've played probably the most frequently over the last few years. So, we're well aware of what they're going to bring. So for us, it's just about making sure we're really clear in the way that we want to play as a team," said the Kiwi batter.
He also gave an update on team news. Captain Mitchell Santner, who missed the last match due to illness, is likely to return and looks fit.
However, fast bowler Lockie Ferguson has travelled back to New Zealand for the birth of his first child. Chapman said it is unclear whether Ferguson will be available for the match.
The 31-year-old batter said, "Santner looks pretty sprightly, so I think he's pretty excited to get back on the park. Barring any last-minute sickness, I think he'll be there. Obviously, Lockie (Ferguson) has left us. I think he's currently on the way back. So we'll just see how he pulls up from the flight. I can't confirm or say whether he'll be in the 11 or not. I'm not too sure, to be honest."
New Zealand will play all their Super Eight matches at the same stadium in Colombo. Chapman said this is helpful because teams usually have to travel and adjust to different grounds. Playing at one venue allows them to understand the conditions better with each game.
"When you play in these tournaments, one of the challenges is hopping from venue to venue and adapting. And playing all three games here, we'll learn each game as we go. For us, it's quite nice to be able to turn up to the same place and the same venue, similar pitches and adjust. Tomorrow's our first game here, so we're going to have to adapt anyway. But we'll look at that later on and understand the conditions a little bit better. So, yeah, certainly something that we're not complaining about," said Chapman.
Speaking on his role in the team and how he is looking to tackle the spin in Sri Lanka, Chapman said, "I think here, especially, given the slower nature of the pitch along with the slightly bigger boundaries as well, you have to certainly change your game plan. I guess for me personally, batting in the middle, I could be potentially in the power play or in with very few overs to go. So I guess specifically against the spinners, it's probably looking at different options around whether you employ a sweep shot more or a reverse sweep, whereas I guess in India, where it doesn't spin as much, you can look to target the straight boundaries a little bit more."
"Each batter has their own method, but I guess for myself, it's looking at different areas of the ground to hit. And obviously, there are big pockets here too, so it's not all about sixes on this ground. Lots of twos, lots of fours, and running hard between the wickets is really important as well, particularly if it's not a very high score," he said.
Both Pakistan and New Zealand won three of their four group-stage matches to qualify for the Super Eights.
Get the latest ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 updates, including the full schedule, teams, live scores, points table, and key series stats such as top run-scorers and wicket-takers.
Start a Conversation
Post comment