The New Zealand National Cricket team vs Pakistan National Cricket Team rivalry is one of the most intense and thrilling cricket rivalries in cricket itself. The two teams have competed against each other since 1955, and since then, they have competed in a plethora of encounters with multiple periods of dominance by both teams. From their first meeting to their most recent tussle in global ICC tournaments, the New Zealand and Pakistan cricketing nations share an epic journey that describes regarding the performances, close finishes, huge moments and turning points – as highlighted in this article – New Zealand National Cricket Team Vs Pakistan National Cricket Team timeline, summising the dynamics of their cricketing relationships over five decades.
Key Takeaways:
The New Zealand vs Pakistan cricket rivalry spans all formats of international cricket, with the first match between them played in 1955.
Both teams have faced each other in several group stages and international competitions, including World Cups, Test series, and T20 internationals.
In the cricket rivalry between Pakistan and New Zealand, notable events include Pakistan’s supremacy in the 1990s and New Zealand’s ascent in the 2010s.
Recent Series: Pakistan tour of New Zealand, 2025- Full Schedule, Match Results
3 ODIs , 5 T20s . Mar 16 – Apr 05
1st T20I- New Zealand vs Pakistan
Venue
Hagley Oval, Christchurch
Date
Mar 16, Sun
Time
6:45 AM
Result
New Zealand won by 9 wkts
2nd T20I- New Zealand vs Pakistan
Venue
University Oval, Dunedin
Date
Mar 18, Tue
Time
6:45 AM
Result
New Zealand won by 5 wkts (15 Overs game due to rain)
3rd T20I- New Zealand vs Pakistan
Venue
Eden Park, Auckland
Date
Mar 21, Fri
Time
11:45 AM
Result
Pakistan won by 9 wkts
4th T20I- New Zealand vs Pakistan
Venue
Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui
Date
Mar 23, Sun
Time
11:45 AM
Result
New Zealand won by 115 runs
5th T20I- New Zealand vs Pakistan
Venue
Sky Stadium, Wellington
Date
Mar 26, Wed
Time
11:45 AM
Result
New Zealand won by 8 wkts
1st ODI- New Zealand vs Pakistan
Venue
McLean Park, Napier
Date
Mar 29, Sat
Time
3:30 AM
Result
New Zealand won by 73 runs
2nd ODI- New Zealand vs Pakistan
Venue
Seddon Park, Hamilton
Date
Apr 02, Wed
Time
3:30 AM
Result
New Zealand won by 84 runs
3rd ODI- New Zealand vs Pakistan
Venue
Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui
Date
Apr 05, Sat
Time
3:30 AM
Result
New Zealand won by 43 runs (42 Ovs game due to wet outfield)
1950s–1970s: The Early Encounters
The New Zealand national cricket team vs the Pakistan national cricket team timeline began when New Zealand made its maiden trip to Pakistan in 1955. While matches were competitive, the early period saw complete dominance of Pakistan, especially in Test matches.
1955-1956 Pakistan vs New Zealand: The two teams played a three-match Test series, which finished in favor of Pakistan, 2-0. Pakistan won the first two Test matches, but the third and last game of the series ended in a tie. Zulfiqar Ahmed, Khan Mohammad, and Hanif Mohammad are crucial players for Pakistan. Imtiaz Ahmed’s run chase of 209 and Waqar Hasan’s 189 in the second Test is still iconic in the Pak vs NZ rivalry.
1964-1965 New Zealand vs Pakistan: Ten years after their first international meeting, the two sides reconnected in New Zealand for a Test series. Although the series ended in a draw, they met again on Pakistan’s land the same year. Pakistan won the series 2-0. Hanif Mohammad’s unbeaten 203 in the second match is historic to date.
1969-1970 Pakistan vs New Zealand: The 3-match Test series in Pakistan was won by New Zealand by 1-0. While 1st and 3rd matches finished in a draw, the second game was won by the Kiwis by 5 wickets, thanks to Bruce Murray (90) and Brian Hastings (80*).
1972-1973 New Zealand vs Pakistan: The Men in Green and the Kiwis played their first ODI match in Christchurch in 1973. New Zealand won the game by 22 runs. Invited to bat first, New Zealand set a target of 188 runs for the visitors. However, the impressive bowling attack of New Zealand prevented Pakistani cricketers from completing the run chase, and they were dismissed for 165.
1978-1979 New Zealand vs Pakistan: Pakistan claimed the 3-match Test series by 1-0. While Men in Green won the first Test match by 128 runs, Black Caps gave them tough times in the second and third games. Javed Miandad, Mushtaq Mohammad, and John Wright were named players of the match in the first game.
1980s to 2000: Era of Tough Competitions
In the 1980s, both teams had remarkable cricketers who would significantly shape their national teams for many years. Players like Martin Crowe and Richard Hadlee made their debuts, marking their names in the sport. Imran Khan, Javed Miandad, and Wasim Akram were among the players who made their debuts for Pakistan and quickly rose to fame. Soon, the New Zealand vs Pakistan cricket rivalry received global attention, and their games became more intense and thrilling.
1983 Prudential World Cup: New Zealand and Pakistan were part of the group stage in the tournament. They faced off each other in the 6th and 22nd matches. While New Zealand won the sixth game of the series against Pakistan in Birmingham by 52 runs, Pakistan won the next game in Nottingham by 11 runs. Zaheer Abbas’ unbeatable 103 was remarkable for his side’s victory.
1984-1985 New Zealand vs Pakistan: New Zealand and Pakistan met each other for a three-match Test series on the Kiwi dirt. The first match played in Wellington ended in a draw; however, the next two matches were claimed by New Zealand. John Reid, Stephen Boock, and Richard Hadlee were significant players for New Zealand. For Pakistan. Wasim Akram, Qasim Omar, and Saleem Malik were crucial players.
1985-1986 Austral-Asia Cup: The two teams met in Sharjah for the second semi-final of the tournament. The game concluded in favor of Pakistan, who won by 10 wickets. With overall team performance, they were able to restrict New Zealand’s total to 64, and Mudassar Nazar and Mohsin Khan made a partnership of 66 runs to win the game. Abdul Qadir took the crucial 4 wickets.
1991-1992 Benson & Hedges World Cup: New Zealand and Pakistan faced off in the 1st semi-final held in Auckland. Pakistan defeated New Zealand by 4 wickets, thanks to the overall batting performance. Inzamam-ul-Haq, who scored 60, was named “man of the match”. Besides, Javed Miandad scored 57 not out, which proved pivotal for his side’s victory. Pakistan won the World Cup for the first time under Imran Khan’s leadership.
1996-1997 Pakistan vs New Zealand: The 2-match Test series in 1996 ended with both teams winning one match each. New Zealand visited Pakistan, and while they won the 1st Test, Pakistan retaliated with a powerful performance in the second game, and defeated the visitors by an innings and 13 runs. In the New Zealand-Pakistan rivalry, notable moments include Mohammad Wasim’s run chase of 109* in the first game, Saeed Anwar’s 149, and Ijaz Ahmed’s 125 in the second.
1999 ICC World Cup: Pakistan again proved its cricketing prowess over New Zealand in the ICC event by defeating the Kiwis in the 1st Semi-Final. Saeed Anwar struck an untouchable 113 with a partnership of 194 with Wajahatullah Wasti, but Shoaib Akhtar claimed three crucial wickets. Pakistan heads to the finals, where they lost to Australia by 8 wickets.
2000 to 2020: The Period of Dynamic Battles
Although New Zealand was dominated by Pakistani cricketers, they made a strong comeback in the new millennium. In particular, the early 2000s saw changes in the New Zealand national cricket team vs Pakistan national cricket team timeline as New Zealand began not only giving Pakistan tough times but also winning crucial games.
Even though Pakistan still had players like Younis Khan and Shoaib Akhtar, New Zealand started to field a far more formidable and well-rounded squad. The Black Caps benefited from the steadiness that players like Shane Bond, Scott Styris, Daniel Vettori, and Stephen Fleming provided.
2000-2001 ICC Knock-Out: The 1st Semi-Final of the ICC Champions Trophy was won by New Zealand. Opting to bat first, Pakistan posed a 253-run target for the Kiwis, which New Zealand claimed with just 6 wickets down. After beating India by four wickets, New Zealand went on to win the title.
2003-2004 New Zealand vs Pakistan: The two-match Test series between the Shaheens and Black Caps was held in New Zealand. New Zealand lost by seven wickets in the second match, while the first ended in a tie. Shoaib Akhtar won the Man of the Match award for his extraordinary bowling figures. Ian Butler also displayed his fast bowling attack. Inzamam-ul-Haq (72) and Muhammad Yousuf (88) also scored significant runs in Pakistan’s victory.
2007-2008 ICC World Twenty20: New Zealand played their debut Twenty20 match against Pakistan in the tournament’s inaugural semi-final. After hitting 143 runs, the New Zealand batsmen were sent to the pavilion with 8 wickets remaining. 7. Pakistan successfully used the powerplay, with Imran Nazir (59) and Mohammad Hafeez (32) beginning the innings. Shoaib Malik entered the game and gave the Shaheens the victory with a score of 26. With his bowling, Umar Gul bestowed by taking important wickets.
2009-2010 ICC Champions Trophy: In the ICC Champions Trophy’s second semifinal, New Zealand defeated Pakistan by five wickets. Restricting Pakistan to 233, New Zealand produced 234 with just 5 wickets down. 41 runs by Daniel Vettori, and Grant Elliott’s unbeatable 75 were key contributors to New Zealand’s run chase.
2010-2011 New Zealand v Pakistan: New Zealand defeated Pakistan 2-0 in the two-match Twenty20 series. Martin Guptill, Tim Southee, and Nathan McCullum were emerging players in the team, leading to the Kiwis’ win.
2014-2015 Pakistan vs New Zealand: New Zealand won this 5-match ODI series by 3-2. The series saw the emergence of legendary players from both sides. Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor, and Matt Henry were the latest additions to the team who proved worthy of the decision. On the other hand, Mohammad Irfan, Haris Sohail, Ahmed Shehzad, and Mohammad Hafeez were notable players for Pakistan.
2018-2019 Pakistan vs New Zealand: New Zealand prevailed in the three-match Test series, winning 2-1 against Pakistan. The Black Caps won the 1st and 3rd matches of the series by 4 runs and 123 runs, respectively. The inclusion of young and innate players in the team helped New Zealand dominate Pakistan in several matches. Tom Latham, Henry Nicholls, BJ Watling, Trent Boult, William Somerville, and Ajaz Patel were some of the remarkable players in the squad.
2018-2019 Pakistan vs New Zealand: Pakistani cricketers and New Zealand players again meet for a T20I match in the UAE. Pakistan clean-swept New Zealand and won the series 3-0. The first match was a thriller as Pakistan won the game by just 2 runs.
2019 ICC World Cup: New Zealand encountered Pakistan in the group stage of the ICC World Cup 2019, where the Shaheens defeated New Zealand by 6 wickets with 5 balls remaining. Babar Azam’s chase of 101 runs is historical in the New Zealand-Pakistan rivalry. However, in the later stage, New Zealand qualified for the finals, where they lost to England on boundary count.
2020s Recent Encounters
2020-2021 New Zealand vs Pakistan: The Black Caps have an upper hand against the Shaheens in recent games. The highly anticipated series proved to be one-sided as New Zealand won by 101 runs and an innings and 176 runs in the first and second games, respectively. Despite adding new players, including Faheem Ashraf, Naseem Shah, and Fakhar Zaman to the team, Pakistan lost several matches.
2024-2025 Pakistan Tri-Nation: The 2-match ODI series was clinched by New Zealand 2-10. Glenn Phillips’s unbeatable 106 in the first game is noteworthy. William O’Rourke’s bowling stats of 9.3-0-43-4 in the second game were even more impressive.
2024-2025 New Zealand vs Pakistan: A 5-match T20I series was played between Pakistan and New Zealand, which concluded with New Zealand winning the series 4-1. By a margin of nine wickets, New Zealand won the opening match with ease. Pakistan claimed the third match by 9 wickets, thanks to Hasan Nawaz’s chase of 105*. New Zealand displayed its growing bowling strength in the 4th game as they dismissed the Shaheens for 105 runs.
New Zealand vs Pakistan Head to Head Records: Tests, ODIs, and T20s
