Match Details
Well, this was always on the cards. Once India posted in excess of 180, the morale in the New Zealand camp was at an all-time low and they crumbled under pressure. A comfortable 73-run win for Team India who have won all three matches in the series. A great start for Rahul Dravid, a great start for Rohit Sharma and a brilliant start to the new era for Team India. New Zealand played well in bits and pieces, but hardly gave any competition to the home side.
Chasing a tricky 185, New Zealand opening duo of Mitchell and Guptill came out all guns blazing and made their intentions pretty clear. There’s a reason as to why we say Rohit Sharma is a brilliant white-ball captain and he proved it once again today. Both the Kiwi openers were enjoying pace on bat, but the introduction of spin inside the power-play changed the course of this match.
Axar Patel got three quick wickets of Mitchell, Chapman and Phillips and turned the tides in India’s favour. But one man stood tall and gave nervy moments to the Indian fans. Martin Guptill looked like a man on a mission as he was unfazed by the things happening around him.
He played some exquisite shots under immense pressure to notch up yet another fifty in T20I cricket. But once he was foxed by Chahal for 51, NZ crumbled under pressure and lost wickets at regular intervals. 185 proved to be a mountain to climb as New Zealand looked clueless and were bundled out for just 111 on the board. This was a complete team performance and coach Rahul Dravid will surely be a happy man.