Champions Trophy: Pakistan fined for slow over rate against New Zealand

Pakistan have been penalised for maintaining a sluggish over pace against New Zealand in the Champions Trophy 2025 opener. The two sides are fighting fiercely in Karachi.

Pakistan won the toss and decided to bowl first. Despite losing some early wickets, New Zealand battled back into the game thanks to centuries from Will Young and Tom Latham. The duo struck 107 and 118 runs, respectively, as the Kiwis recorded a daunting total of 320/5.

However, Pakistan struggled to maintain the over rate, despite Mohammad Rizwan's decision to alternate pace and spin in the middle overs. Pacer Haris Rauf had several incorrect starts throughout his period, causing them to fall even further behind. Rizwan also interacted with his bowlers several times between overs, which caused a few delays.

To avoid the catastrophe, Pakistan had Khushdil Shah and Abrar Ahmed bowl from overs 41-44. This did not produce better outcomes, as by the 48th over, they had failed to catch up on time. 

As a result, a penalty was applied, allowing the team to put just four fielders (rather than five) beyond the 30-yard circle during the final powerplay of the innings.

According to the Champions Trophy playing criteria, the minimum over rate to be achieved is 14.28 overs per hour, which means that an ODI innings should last three and a half hours. However, the first inning ended at 6:11pm local time, bringing the innings' total duration to little more than four hours. 

According to the ICC Code of Conduct, every member of the fielding side may be fined 5% of their match fee every over if they fall short of the minimum rate (limited at 50% of the match fee). In addition, Pakistani players may face fines for falling below the rate.