Twitter Reactions: New Zealand bag T20I series against spirited UAE side

The UAE players can hold their heads high as they took the fight to New Zealand in all three matches of the T20I series. Their fans will hope that the team can go from strength to strength after this noteworthy performance. After falling short by just 19 runs in the first T20I, the UAE players came back strongly to register a historic seven-wicket win in the second T20I to set the series up for an intriguing finish.

Muhammad Waseem won the toss for the third time in a row in the final T20I at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium and had no hesitation in inviting New Zealand to bat first. The openers, Chad Bowes and Tim Seifert failed to go big but half-centuries from Will Young and Mark Chapman helped the visitors get to a stable base. The UAE bowlers pulled things back commendably in the death overs, even as Mitchell Santner played a fine cameo of 20* in 11 balls. Fast bowler Junaid Siddique was the star of the show as he finished with figures of 3/26.

Chasing a challenging target of 167 on a tricky pitch, the hosts couldn't make good use of the Powerplay. In the first six overs, the UAE could only muster 40 runs for the loss of two wickets. The heroes of the second T20I, Muhammad Waseem and Asif Khan departed for eight and 11, respectively. After being in all sorts of trouble at 53/5, the home side managed to show some fight thanks to a 68-run partnership between Basil Hameed and Aayan Afzal Khan.

Eventually, disciplined bowling from New Zealand, headlined by Ben Lister, who finished with a three-for, helped them win the match by 32 runs and take the series 2-1. Will Young was awarded Player of the Match for his 46-ball 56 while Mark Chapman took the Player of the Series award for finishing as the highest run-getter (129) across the three games.

Here’s how Twitter reacted to the third T20I between New Zealand and the UAE:

Congrats Muhammad Waseem for 1000 t 20 I runs 👏👏 #UAEvNZ

— Arunabh Bhardwaj (@ArunabhBhardwa4) August 21, 2023

First T20I: NZ won by 19 runs
Second T20I: UAE won by 7 wickets
Third T20I: NZ won by 32 runs

Tim Southee leads his side to a 2-1 win #UAEvNZ

— Tasnim Mahmood Sajid 🇧🇩 (@MahmoodTasnim) August 21, 2023

New Zealand clinches the T20I series 2-1 against UAE with a fantastic victory in the decider match, winning by 32 runs! #UAEvNZ pic.twitter.com/hIIyMtXNur

— Muhammad Areeb Uddin Sheikh. #AreebCricketWorld (@areeb_7official) August 21, 2023

Champions @BLACKCAPS #UAEvNZ pic.twitter.com/qw3J1VUUs5

— #BackTheBLACKCAPS 🇳🇿 (@KW_Fans436) August 20, 2023

A series win in Dubai! Ben Lister with 3-35 leading the wicket takers in T20I 3. Thank you for hosting @EmiratesCricket. Scorecard | https://t.co/nkmf7dnNgJ #UAEvNZ

— Anshul Chhetri (@AnshulFitness) August 20, 2023

"An impressive series win for New Zealand! 🏆🇳🇿 The Kiwis showed their prowess by securing victory with a 2-1 score against UAE. And that 32-run win in the 3rd T20 truly showcased their skill and determination. Congratulations, New Zealand! 🎉👏🏏 #UAEvNZ"

— Kwikiriza samuel Wamananu (@WamananuSamuel) August 20, 2023

No real drama there in Dubai.

A clinical performance from New Zealand to win by 32 runs to take the series 2-1#UAEvNZ #NZvUAE pic.twitter.com/awS2vER4gk

— Abhijeet ♞ (@TheYorkerBall) August 20, 2023

Trust me this one is thousands time better than @BCBtigers graphic 🙏#UAEvNZ pic.twitter.com/55TDesKeOR

— Afrid Mahmud Rifat 🇧🇩 (@amr_801) August 20, 2023

Adithiya Ashok made his debut for New Zealand today. Another non resident Indian made debut for New Zealand cricket. #cricket #UAEvNZ #IRLvIND

— Aninda Sarkar (@sarkaraninda02) August 20, 2023