Pakistan players celebrate winning the series against New Zealand Wednesday. (Reuters) WELLINGTON: Pakistan captain Misbahul Haq produced a man of the match performance to ensure his side batted out the final day to draw the second Test against New Zealand Wednesday and claim their first series victory since 2006. Misbah finished the day on 70 not out, following on from his 99 in the first innings, as Pakistan reached 226 for five at the close of play, 48 runs short of its victory target of 274, to wrap up the two-match series 1-0. Adnan Akmal was two not out as the visitors claimed its first series win since it beat the West Indies 2-0 at home five years ago. “It's pretty pleasing, we've been through some rough times but we've played some really good cricket in this series, we've been very disciplined,” Pakistan coach Waqar Younis told reporters. “Full credit to Misbah and the boys, I think they all stuck to the task and managed to win the series.” Misbah had shared in an 118-run stand with Younus Khan (81) – their second century-stand of the match – after New Zealand had threatened to spoil the visitors' day when they reduced them to 42-3 in the first session. Chris Martin was particularly aggressive in the first session, taking 2-24 off nine overs and had the Pakistani batsmen frantically trying to see him off. New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori also provided some concerning moments for the visitors, introducing himself in the eighth over and getting bounce from the harder ball and some turn out of the footmarks. Misbah and Younus, however, slowly but assuredly ground down the attack and for long periods during the session between lunch and tea looked to have given up any pretence of chasing down the target before they slowly began to increase the scoring rate. New Zealand was given the slightest hope of a final session victory when Younus was caught by Reece Young off Tim Southee in the final over before tea. Misbah, who faced 172 balls and hit his fifth boundary to bring up his 50 after 255 minutes at the crease, and Asad Shafiq, however, continued to combine stoic defence and flirting with the possibility of launching a frantic final assault. In the final hour, Vettori trapped Shafiq in front for 24 to leave Pakistan 215-5 and while the New Zealand bowlers attempted to rattle them with several vociferous appeals, Akmal and Misbah negotiated their way through until the close. Martin finished with 2-63 off 24 overs, leaving him on 199 Test wickets. Waqar questioned over World Cup comment Pakistan coach Waqar Younis has been asked to explain himself to the national cricket board after criticizing it for a delay in naming its captain for next month's World Cup. A spokesman for the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said that a notice had been sent to Waqar over his comments made from New Zealand following its 2-1 Test series win there. “We have asked him to explain his statement over the captaincy,” media manager Nadeem Sarwar said. Former Test captain Waqar, who guided Pakistan to their first Test series win since 2006 by winning the two-match series in New Zealand Wednesday, had told Geo Super channel that he was surprised by the board decision. “I am surprised that the board has delayed announcing the captain. I don't know the reasons for this but personally I think the captain should have been named with the team,” Waqar said. Former Test captains and ex-selectors have criticized the PCB decision to delay announcing the captain, claiming it would lead to internal problems in the team and make players insecure.
