At Karachi National Stadium: New Zealand 449 and 277-5 declared drew with Pakistan 408 and 304-9 (Sarfaraz Ahmed 118, Shan Masood 35; Michael Bracewell 4-75). Series drawn 0-0.
For the second time in a week, New Zealand have been unable to bowl out Pakistan on the last day to win a test match.
Bad light had the final say again in Karachi on the last day of the second test in the two-game series, with stumps called prematurely when both sides were in sight of victory.
The Black Caps still required one wicket – and the hosts needed 15 runs – for the win when stumps were called with three scheduled overs still left unbowled.
Pakistan were 304-9, with wicketkeeper-batter Sarfaraz Ahmed the key contributor as his 118 from 176 balls frustrated New Zealand’s quest for victory.
The first test was drawn at the same venue last week, meaning the series was tied 0-0.
The hosts began the final day in desperate trouble, two wickets down without a run on the board in their second innings. They’d been set a target of 319 to win the test and the series when New Zealand declared late on day four.
Pakistan lost three further wickets before the lunch break – mostly through their own ill-discipline – leaving the tourists still heavily favoured.
New Zealand’s Daryl Mitchell, right, takes a catch to dismiss Pakistan’s Saud Shakeel during the fifth day of the second test in Karachi.
But veteran Sarfaraz looked at one stage as if he was going to spearhead a remarkable win for the hosts, before falling in the 87th of 90 overs as he also began to run out of partners.
In the first test which finished a week ago at the same venue, New Zealand were unable to take the eight second-innings wickets required to set up victory – which would have been just their third test win in Pakistan.
The host side entered the test series shortly after being dispatched 3-0 in their home test series against England, giving them four consecutive test defeats in Pakistan for the first time in their history after Australia sealed a 1-0 series win previously.
Despite being ripe for the picking, New Zealand were unable to make the decisive moves on the final day on pitches at the Karachi National Stadium which made wickets for the bowlers difficult to capture.
Under new captain Tim Southee, the tourists had periods of hesitancy and caution when more aggression may have rewarded them with a clean sweep of the series as England had managed prior.
Sarfaraz and Saud Shakeel put on 123 for the sixth wicket, as Pakistan didn’t lose a wicket in the second session. Shakeel made 32 from 146 balls, which slowed New Zealand’s chase for victory but also had a similar impact for the hosts.
When the home side reached 273 for six in the final session, a Pakistan win looked the most likely outcome, but Agha Salman perished with an ugly and unnecessary heave across the line when Sarfaraz looked capable of playing the guiding hand.
The umpires calling stumps with 18 balls still left to produce a memorable result.
New Zealand were bowling spin, so there were no dangerous circumstances, and both sides were chasing a thrilling and series-clinching victory. To halt matters when they did made no sense.
Pakistan’s Sarfraz Ahmed defied New Zealand for much of the final day of the second test in Karachi.
Best with the bat
Sarfaraz’s previous test ton came in 2014 – the year he scored all three centuries he had prior to the final day. The former captain, only recalled recently, may have had his moments with his keeping but was a constant thorn for the Black Caps with the bat.
He mixed his usual positivity with stubborn defence when required to get the hosts within touching distance of what would have been a record last-innings pursuit of victory in Pakistan.
Michael Bracewell isn’t regarded as a frontline spin bowler, yet Southee often went to the offie for wickets and he responded with 4-75 off 20 overs, including the scalps of Sarfaraz and skipper Babar Azam.
