Summary Pakistan brought back left-arm pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi in place of Usman Shinwari.
ABU DHABI (AFP) - Pakistan captain Sarfraz Ahmed won the toss and decided to bat in the first Twenty20 international against New Zealand in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.
Pakistan, who are on a roll after a 3-0 whitewash of Australia on Sunday, brought back left-arm pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi in place of another fast bowler Usman Shinwari.
New Zealand left out express paceman Lockie Ferguson and included both spinners in Ish Sodhi and Ajaz Patel.
The remaining two matches are in Dubai on Friday and Sunday.
Teams
Pakistan: Sarfraz Ahmed (captain), Mohammad Hafeez, Sahibzada Farhan, Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik, Asif Ali, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Hasan Ali, Imad Wasim, Faheem Ashraf
New Zealand: Kane Williamson (captain), Corey Anderson, Colin de Grandhomme, Adam Milne, Colin Munro, Ajaz Patel, Glenn Phillips, Tim Seifert, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor
