Pak vs NZ: Pakistan win toss, elect to bowl first in third T20I

Pakistan won the toss and elected to bowl first against New Zealand in the third Twenty20 International of the five-match series in Dunedin on Wednesday.

The match, set to commence at midnight 1 pm (midnight GMT) today, promises to be a thrilling encounter between the two cricketing nations.

Tim Southee, who took over the captaincy from Kane Williamson on the field during the second match, handed the captain's responsibilities to Mitchell Santner for the third match.

Santner, now at the helm, confirmed three changes in the Kiwi squad. The playing eleven witnessed the inclusion of Tim Seifert, Matt Henry, and Lockie Ferguson, who replaced Williamson, Ben Sears, and Adam Milne, respectively. Meanwhile, Will Young entered the squad as a replacement for Williamson but did not secure a spot in the final eleven.

Shaheen Shah Afridi, the captain of the Pakistani cricket team, officially confirmed three changes in the lineup during the pre-match announcement. 

The changes in the team include Mohammad Nawaz stepping in for Aamer Jamal, Mohammad Wasim replacing Usama Mir, and Zaman Khan coming in for Abbas Afridi.

AFP adds: Pakistan captain Shaheen Shah Afridi, who won the toss for the first two games and bowled first, said the overcast conditions were in his favour.

"I think we´re ready," he said of the need to win and keep the series alive.

New Zealand stand-in captain Mitchell Santner said he probably would have bowled first as well but still expected a high-scoring performance.

The Black Caps are without regular captain Kane Williamson, who was already scheduled to be rested for game three and will now miss the remainder of the series because of a hamstring injury.

Tim Seifert comes in for Williamson with Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson also added to bolster the bowling ranks.

New Zealand have never lost in 15 internationals at Dunedin´s University Oval.

PLAYING ELEVENS:

Pakistan: Mohammad Rizwan, Saim Ayub, Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Azam Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi(capt), Mohammad Wasim, Haris Rauf, Zaman Khan

New Zealand: Finn Allen, Devon Conway, Tim Seifert, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Mitchell Santner(capt), Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Matt Henry, Lockie Ferguson