What a terrific comeback that from New Zealand but in the end, India held their nerves to get over the line. They were cruising at one point when Rohit and Surya were going hammer and tongs but their dismissals held the door ajar for the Kiwis, who fought tooth and nail to ensure the last leg wasn't a walk in the park for the host. But Pant hung in there to see the team home. A winning start to new skipper Rohit and head coach Dravid's tenure. That will be all from our side. Thanks for joining us tonight.
- END OF MATCH -
Venkatesh Iyer joins Pant. Daryl Mitchell to bowl the last over. Starts with a wide. 9 off 6. SHOT! Venkatesh Iyer pulls the next ball away for four. And he has been caught next ball! It is all happening in Jaipiur. 5 off 4 and Axar is in next. Mitchell bowls a wide again. 4 off 4. 3 off 3 with Pant on strike. Pant finishes off in style - boundary to long off and India win with two balls to spare.
IND 155/4 in 19 overs: Southee to bowl the 19th. Single off the first ball. This is brilliant from Southee so far - three singles off the first three. 1 leg bye. This is getting too close for India's comfort. Iyer gets two now as the ball falls in no man's land. Iyer holes out off the last ball. India need 10 to win off 6 balls and there will be a new batter in the middle.
IND 149/3 in 18 overs: Lockie to bowl out. Only five off the over. 16 needed off 12.
IND 144/3 in 17 overs: Boult to bowl out. Starts with two dots vs Pant. Pant gets a single next ball. Surya is clean bowled next ball. Shreyas Iyer is in next. Boult ends with a dot: 4-0-31-2.
IND 142/2 in 16 overs: Pant has crunched this through deep extra for four. Tough night with the ball for Southee. It's Surya's turn now to dab one through thirdman for four. He collects four more next ball as Boult drops a sitter at fine leg. 15 off the over.
IND 127/2 in 15 overs: Here's Lockie. Surya brings up his 50 with a six! Off just 34 balls with a six over backward square. Single next ball. Pant takes a single and gets off strike. A couple of misfields off the last two balls and India finish the 15th with 12 runs.
IND 115/2 in 14 overs: Boult back into the attack. Rohit on strike. Boult starts with a dot. Rohit perishes two shy of a fifty! Rishabh Pant is in next. Pant off the mark with a single. What a shot from Surya - room outside off and Surya just crunches it through covers for four.
IND 109/1 in 13 overs: Santner into the fourth over. Just five off his last. Excellent from Mitch. 1 for 19. 56 off 42 needed.
IND 104/1 in 12 overs: Astle bowls length and SKY clobbers this over long-on for six. He then brings up the 50 partnership with a boundary through midwicket. 15 off the over. Need 61 from 48 balls.
IND 89/1 in 11 overs: Santner into his third. Goes for just four. India cruising at the moment. Once again, the team that has won the toss has been on top.
IND 85/1 in 10 overs: Here's Lockie. Was turning out to be a good over until Ferguson went a touch too full on middle and SKY whipped it over mid-wicket for four.
IND 79/1 in 9 overs: Astle continues. Three off the first three balls. Rohit gets a couple off the fourth ball and SKY ends the over with a maximum over deep mid-wicket.
IND 67/1 in 8 overs: Santner continues. A lbw review against SKY. Impact is outside and NZ lose a review. Four runs off the over. Excellent over. Need 98 from 72 balls.
IND 63/1 in 7 overs: Todd Astle starts with a juicy full toss and Rohit has timed it away for four. A little chip over extra-cover and the ball raced away. Good comeback. Just three off the remaining deliveries.
IND 56/1 in 6 overs: Santner into the attack. He strikes first ball as Rahul holes out. He has picked the fielder at deep square. Suryakumar is in at 3. He's off the mark with a single. He ends it with a boundary to fine leg.
IND 50/0 in 5 overs: Change of ends for Boult. He goes short first ball and Rahul has pulled that handsomely for six. Rohit has been given four runs. Boult digs in the bouncer and Rohit, who is shaping up to pull, misses the ball. There was no glove or bat according to Ultra-Edge. Next ball, Rohit bisects short third and backward point for four. And the new skipper brings up his team's 50 with a pull over square leg boundary. 21 off the over.
IND 29/0 in 4 overs: Ferguson into the attack. A single and 1 leg bye off the first three balls. Deep backward point and deep square leg are the two fielders outside the circle. 1 leg bye to Rahul now. Ferguson cranking up the pace here. Rohit collects two off the last ball. India need 136 runs in 96 balls.
IND 24/0 in 3 overs: Southee to continue. Concedes a wide. Width on offer and Rohit has flayed this slightly full ball square of the wicket for four. He follows it up with a trademark square-cut for four more. Fabulous. Rohit's flexing now - ends the over with a pull for six. 15 off the over.
IND 9/0 in 2 overs: Here's Trent Boult. Little swing on offer for Boult and Southee. Rohit off the mark with a single off the fourth ball. Just two from that over.
IND 7/0 in 1 over: KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma to begin the chase. Tim Southee has the new ball. Rahul on strike. Slip in place. Rahul opens his account with a couple. Edged and it just about eludes Guptill at slip and runs away for four. Seven off the first over.
- START OF CHASE -
India need 165 to win. Good comeback from the bowlers after the mauling from Chapman and Guptill. R Ashwin was the pick of the bowlers with 2 for 23. Bhuvi finished with 2 for 24. We will be back with the chase shortly.
Siraj to wrap up the innings. He has hurt himself, has Siraj. Santner hit this straight back at the bowler, who gets hit on the left hand. Ravindra gets a boundary off an inside edge. Siraj follows it up with a dot. And another dot ball. He clean bowls Ravindra off his fifth ball. This has been a stunning over from Siraj. 2 byes off the last ball. Seven off the last over.
NZ 157/5 in 19 Overs: Bhuvneshwar to bowl the 19th. Seifert departs first ball. The bowlers dragging the game back after that onslaught from Guptill. Santner joins Ravindra. He gets a couple off the fifth ball. A single to end the over. Five from it.
NZ 152/3 in 18 Overs: SIX! Guptill is cutting loose - has tonked a 98 m-long six over midwicket to bring up the 150. He holes out next ball! One big hit too many - Iyer with a nice catch. Umpires checking for a backfoot no-ball. Chahar is fine. Rachin Ravindra joins Seifert. Hang on, there is a review from India for caught behind. Rachin, the batter in question. No spike as the ball passes the bat. India lose a review. Excellent finish from Chahar. Eight runs and a wicket.
NZ 144/3 in 17 Overs: Bhuvneshwar returns. Guptill on strike. Starts with a wide. Guptill gets a single next ball. Seifert gets a single too. Bhuvi offers width and Guptill gets underneath the ball and pummels it over deep extra for six. Fabulous shot. Seifert gets a reprieve! Axar drops a dolly and what's worse? He parries that away to the fence. 14 off the over.
NZ 130/3 in 16 Overs: Axar to bowl out. Seven off the over with Seifert getting a boundary to fine leg off the last ball. Was a good over until that point.
NZ 123/3 in 15 Overs: Siraj is back. Guptill on strike. Leading edge off the first ball but Guptill will take a couple. Guptill has clubbed this over midwicket for six. It also brings up his 50! A 31-ball fifty. His first vs India. End of the 15th with a single.
NZ 110/3 in 14 Overs: Here's Ashwin for his last over. Chapman slaps the first ball over cover for four. But he has been cleaned up next ball! Nicely tossed up by Ash and Chapman was beaten in the flight on that occasion. Chapman goes for a 50-ball 63. Phillips in next. Beats the new batter first ball - terrific from Ash. Phillips has been adjudged lbw! He reviews promptly. Replays uphold the on-field call. Three-ball duck for Phillips. Seifert is in next. Dot to end the over. Ashwin: 4-0-23-2.
NZ 106/1 in 13 Overs: Chahar is back. Starts with a slower ball. Guptill has a swing and misses. In fact he got an edge but the ball dropped short of Pant. Guptill gets a single next ball. Chapman plays a flourishing drive for a couple. He then brings up the team 100 with a single. A brace for Guptill now. Guptill ends with a boundary.
NZ 96/1 in 12 Overs: Axar into his third. Chapman has brought up his fifty for New Zealand with a six off a full toss! 52 off 45 balls. He ends the over with a well timed shot past backward point for four. 15 from that over. Runs starting to flow now.
NZ 81/1 in 11 Overs: Siraj returns for another crack. Guptill mistimes a pull but the ball falls in no man's land - it is a couple for NZ. Sharp fielding by Chahar at backward square, who saved three there. Just a single for Guptill. Both batters looking for the boundaries now as they should. But Siraj has been up to the task thus far. He errs now and Guptill hits it over long-off for six. Right in the slot. And a four to finish the innings - 16 from it.
NZ 65/1 in 10 Overs: Axar continues. New Zealand have the platform to launch an all-out assault on the Indian bowlers. Batters have found it difficult to score every time the spinners have taken pace off the ball. Brilliant from Axar - just three from it.
NZ 62/1 in 9 Overs: Ashwin bowling his third. Two singles and a brace off the first three balls. 1 leg bye to end the over. 7 off the over in the end. Ashwin so far: 3-0-19-0.
NZ 55/1 in 8 Overs: More spin. Axar Patel into the attack. Guptill pulls Patel to Siraj for a single first ball. Chapman cuts the next ball for a single. NZ's 50 comes up and the 50-run partnership up too off the next ball. Brilliant from Guptill and Chapman - good running between the wickets. Single to finish the over.
NZ 48/1 in 7 Overs: Rohit is back on the field. Ashwin to bowl the seventh. Lovely from Ashwin so far. But he errs on the last ball and Chapman sweeps him to fine leg for four.
NZ 41/1 in 6 Overs: Chahar is back. Guptill starts with a boundary. Rohit Sharma has gone off the field. Seems to have hurt his right hand. Chahar mixing the pace up this over. Couple of slower balls now. SHOT! Mitchell plays a beautiful pickup shot for four. Chahar goes full and pays the price. Chahar responds with another slower ball. Flat six from Chapman to end the over! Slammed it over deep mid-wicket.
NZ 26/1 in 5 Overs: Spin has been introduced and it is Ravichandran Ashwin, who will do the honours. Goes round the wicket to Chapman, who picks up a double with a nudge towards deep extra cover. A brilliant effort by KL Rahul in the deep restricts Chapman to two runs again. Ashwin's carrom ball skids through as Guptill picks up a single off the last delivery.
NZ 20/1 in 4 Overs: Change in bowling. Md. Siraj into the attack. Guptill gets off strike with a quick single. India have kept the lid on the scoring rate so far. Another quick one, this one's riskier. Rohit has a shy at the non-striker's end but misses. A single down the ground for Guptill. Just a single to end the over.
NZ 15/1 in 3 Overs: Bhuvi continues, over the wicket. That slip is still in place. Two genuine swing bowlers bowling in tandem at the moment. Nearly had another one there! Outside edge evades the stretched arm of Pant and races away to the fence. The slip was taken off on the previous delivery! Three dots to end the over.
NZ 11/1 in 2 Overs: Chahar to share the new ball. Chapman on strike. Wide slip in place. Chapman off the mark with a couple. Chapman goes aerial and gets a boundary to sweeper cover. Another couple off an inside edge this time. End of the over.
NZ 2/1 in 1 Over: Guptill takes strike. Bhuvi with the new ball. Slip in place. Hint of movement there on the first ball. Guptill off the mark with a quick single next ball. GONE! Mitchell is out first ball, clean bowled with an inswinger. Mark Chapman in at No. 3. Two slips in place. Excellent over.
First up, the national anthems. New Zealand's followed by host India's. R Ashwin's 50th T20I tonight.
Out come the teams - India, led by Rohit and New Zealand, led by Southee. Just two evenings after a World Cup heartbreak, New Zealand are here. Such is international cricket. No rest for the weary!
Less than 10 minutes left for the start. Daryl Mitchell and Martin Guptill will eye a rapid start. Will be interesting to see if Bhuvi and Chahar can get the new ball to swing.
TOSS UPDATE: Rohit Sharma has won his first toss as T20I captain! India will field first.
India (Playing 11): Rohit Sharma(c), KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant(w), Venkatesh Iyer, Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Mohammed Siraj
New Zealand (Playing 11) : Martin Guptill, Daryl Mitchell, Mark Chapman, Glenn Phillips, Tim Seifert(w), Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee(c), Todd Astle, Lockie Ferguson, Trent Boult
Venkatesh Iyer has been handed his cap by Rohit Sharma and will make his T20I debut for India. Here's our interview with India's latest T20I debutant.
6:15 PM - We are only 15 mins away from toss.
5:48 PM - India P11: Rohit Sharma (capt), KL Rahul, Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Axar Patel, R Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Siraj, Yuzvendra Chahal
New Zealand P11: Martin Guptill, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Tim Seifert (wk), James Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Kyle Jamieson, Tim Southee (capt), Lockie Ferguson, Ish Sodhi
5:18 PM - Virat Kohli and Kane Williamson are among the high-profile absentees for the three-match T20I series; The Black Caps are bidding to bounce back from their World Cup defeat against Australia on Sunday while the Men in Blue, under a new captain and coach, are looking to start afresh after the embarrassing group-stage exit at the World Cup.
MATCH PREVIEW
The group stage exit at the recent ICC Men's T20 World Cup came as a shock to the Indian team. It was a sorry end to Virat Kohli’s reign as captain in the shortest format.
The time is right to start afresh. Over to Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid, who will begin a new chapter as the T20I captain and head coach respectively.
A three-match T20I series against New Zealand, which commences here on Wednesday, provides the first test for the Rohit-Dravid combination.
With the next T20 World Cup less than a year away, the duo has little time to ease into their roles. The tricky process of identifying players for key positions will be their top priority at this stage.
The squad is missing senior players such as Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Shami, which will tempt the team management to push a few inexperienced hopefuls into the spotlight.
Chennai Super Kings and Maharashtra batter Ruturaj Gaikwad, the leading run-scorer in IPL 2021, could add to his two T20I caps.
Venkatesh Iyer, whose exploits at the top of the order was crucial to Kolkata Knight Riders’ ascent to the final, could be handed an India debut. Uncapped pacers Harshal Patel and Avesh Khan will be eager to translate franchise success to the international stage.
Leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal returns to the fold after being dropped from the World T20 squad, while Shreyas Iyer makes his comeback from injury troubles. The search for a fast-bowling all-rounder continues, with Hardik Pandya left out after a disappointing run in the World T20.
New Zealand, meanwhile, can be excused for entering the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in a weary daze. Just three days ago, the side featured in the World T20 final in Dubai. There is no time to brood; the schedule demands that you pack your bags immediately and rush to the next stopover.
The demands of this packed calendar, however, have scalped a big victim. Captain and batting mainstay Kane Williamson will sit out of the T20I series to prepare for the Test series starting on November 25 at Kanpur. “With the opening game of the T20 series on Wednesday evening, followed by games on Friday and Sunday night - the decision was made for Williamson to join the Test specialist group already training in Jaipur as they focus on red-ball preparation,” a New Zealand Cricket media release stated.
Tim Southee, who is part of both the T20I and Test squads, will fill in for Williamson as skipper.
Pacer Lockie Ferguson is recovering well from a right calf-strain, and is expected to be available for selection.
Form guide
India WWWLL
New Zealand LWWWW
Comments
SHARE