HARARE, JAN 27: Sameer Minhas scored unbeaten 76-run knock as Pakistan beat New Zealand by eight wickets in the Super Sixes fixture of the ICC Men’s U19 World Cup 2026 at Harare Sports Club on Tuesday.
The Green Shirts chased down the 111-run target for the loss of two wickets in 17.1 overs.
Openers Hamza Zahoor and Minhas set the tone early, as the duo dealt in boundaries to put pressure on the New Zealand bowling attack with a solid partnership to launch the chase.
The partnership was broken when Zahoor was dismissed for eight off 11 balls, including two fours, by Mason Clarke, leaving the team at 18-1 after 2.5 overs.
Minhas was in top form with the bat, continuing to score freely and helping his side surpass the 50-run mark in the eighth over.
Usman Khan and Minhas batted sensibly, with the opener scoring the bulk of the runs in their partnership, while Minhas raised his bat for his fourth fifty in Youth ODIs.
However, the 67-run partnership was eventually broken when Luke Harrison claimed the prized wicket of Khan, who scored 15 off 24 balls, including one four, leaving the team at 85-2 in 14.1 overs.
Skipper Farhan Yousaf then came to the crease and added valuable runs, but it was Minhas who struck the winning runs, remaining unbeaten on 76 off 59 balls, featuring 10 fours and two sixes, while Yousaf contributed 11 off nine deliveries.
Batting first, New Zealand got off to a poor start as opener Marco William Alpe was dismissed in the third over by pacer Ali Raza for two runs off seven balls.
The duo of Hugo Bogue and skipper Tom Jones then joined forces to stabilise the innings, aiming to push Pakistan onto the back foot.
However, their 48-run stand was broken when Bogue was dismissed by Mohammad Sayyam, who finished with 39 off 27 balls, including six boundaries and two sixes, leaving New Zealand at 59-2 in 7.5 overs.
In the next over, Jones was dismissed by Abdul Subhan after scoring 15 off 16 deliveries, which included two fours and one six.
The Blackcaps’ struggle continued as they lost two more wickets — Snehith Reddy and Jacob Cotter — for six and two runs respectively, dismissed by Raza and Subhan.
Subhan was in top form with the ball, picking up his third wicket by dismissing Jaskaran Sandhu for a second-ball duck, leaving the team at 67-6 in 12.3 overs.
New Zealand were soon seven down as Brandon Matzopoulos fell for a duck, courtesy of Raza, who claimed his third wicket of the game.
The Blackcaps kept losing wickets at regular intervals as spinner Momin Qamar entered the attack, claiming his first wicket by dismissing Callum Samson for 10 off 22 balls, which included one four, leaving the team struggling at 84 for 8 in 20.5 overs.
Mason Clarke and Hunter Shore batted together, steadily adding crucial runs and taking their team past the 100-run mark in the 25th over.
Subhan returned to the attack and broke a solid partnership by dismissing Mason Clarke for 17 off 48 balls, which included one four, while Hunter Shore was the last batter to be run out after scoring 13.
Subhan was the standout bowler, taking 4/11 in 6.3 overs. Raza claimed three wickets, while Sayyam and Qamar took one each.
