Mohammad Amir set to make international return as Pakistan face New Zealand in first T20 today

Pakistan will face New Zealand in the first Twenty20 International of the three-match series on Friday at the Eden Park in Auckland. The match will begin at 11:00 hours PST (11:30 am IST).

With Mohammad Amir set to make his comeback from a ban for spot-fixing, all eyes are set on the match.

The 23-year-old is expected to be named in the starting lineup for the tour-opening Twenty20. Pakistan will pit their hostile bowling attack against a New Zealand unit brimming with in form batsmen.

Conditions in New Zealand usually facilitate swing and movement, and Amir will bolster the Pakistan pace attack. Pakistan’s squad also contains the likes of Anwar Ali and Aamer Yamin, apart from Umar Gul and Wahab Riaz.

But it will not be easy to beat New Zealand, whose batsmen are on a rampage of late. The home side swept Sri Lanka in a two-match T20I series 2-0, after winning the five-match One-Day International series 3-1 and the Tests 2-0.

In the final T20I at Auckland, Martin Guptill set the New Zealand record for the fastest T20I half-century off 19 balls, only for Colin Munro to shatter that 20 minutes later, getting to the mark in just 14 balls.