The Blackcaps have been crushed by 88 runs in their opening Twenty20 international against Pakistan in Lahore on Saturday morning (NZ time).
Fast-bowler Matt Henry's late hat-trick was the lone highlight of the match for the New Zealanders, who bowled Pakistan out for 182 in the final over.
In response, the visitors lost wickets early and often, unable to establish any partnerships in the face of some superb Pakistan bowling, as they capitulated for just 94 in the 16th over.
The result means Pakistan take a 1-0 lead in the five-match series, with the second game scheduled for Sunday morning.
Henry became the fourth player NZ player to earn a hat-trick in T20 internationals, joining Tim Southee (twice), Jacob Oram and Michael Bracewell.
In the final two balls of the 13th over, he had Shadab Khan caught behind, then consigned Iftikhar Ahmed to the same fate courtesy of a smart DRS review.
He returned in the 19th over to complete the feat courtesy of a well-taken catch at long-on by Daryl Mitchell, who lobbed the ball to Chad Bowes before stepping on the rope.
But that was as good as it got for the tourists. Opener Tom Latham (20 off 24) and Mark Chapman (34 off 27) were the only batters to make an impression and once they departed in consecutive overs, the wheels completely fell off, as they lost their final six wickets for just 19 runs.
Quick Haris Rauf led the charge for Pakistan with a brilliant spell of 4/18 off just 3.3 overs, while Imad Wasim snared 2/2 in his only over of the match.
"Our preparation was not ideal but we will not use that as an excuse," said Blackcaps captain Latham after the game.
"We did not quite adapt to the conditions early enough. We did well up top and in patches with the ball. On that surface, the score was slightly above-par.
"We did not build partnerships with the bat and once the rate went up, we had no choice but to go hard."
After Pakistan had won the toss and elected to bat first, Fakhar Aazwan and Saim Ayub shared in a whirlwind third-wicket partnership of 79 from just 43 balls.
At 123/3 in the 13th over, they seemed destined for a total beyond the 200-mark, until Henry, Jimmy Neesham (1/18 off three overs), and Ben Lister (2/30) helped pull back the run rate.
In pursuit, the Blackcaps lost Bowes LBW via review to Zaman Khan in the second over for just one, although he may consider himself unlucky, after balltracker showed a delivery that seemed to be missing leg clattering into the stumps. Even Khan had returned to his run-up expecting his review to be denied.
Will Young (2) got an inside edge on to his stumps to leave New Zealand 13/2. Mitchell blasted a pair of fours before being caught chasing another, bringing Chapman to the crease.
The Aucklander struck five boundaries in his gallant attempt to kickstart the NZ innings, as the asking run rate crept above 13.
He was eventually well caught at third man in the 13th over - closely followed by his captain - to start the ending for the Blackcaps.
Henry described his maiden international hat-trick as special, though the individual achievement was somewhat overshadowed by the team's overall performance.
But after having a taste of the Lahore pitch, Henry is confident his team will bounce back stronger in Sunday's second showdown
"It's very special," Henry said. "Obviously a bit of a shame with the result. You never want to be on the losing side of something like that.
"With the bat, guys are just getting used to these conditions. They're very different to what we've been playing.
"The batters will be very good for a hitout like that, taking that into tonight."
Pakistan 182 in 19.5 overs (Ayub 47, Zaman 47; Henry 3/32, Ben Lister 2/30) New Zealand 94 in 15.3 overs (Chapman 34; Rauf 4/18, Wasim 2/2)
Pakistan win by 88 runs
