India vs New Zealand, 1st T20 Highlights: Kiwis win opening T20I by 80 runs; India record worst loss
Live updates: India lose by 80 runs, their worst by run margin. India managed to score just 139 after the Kiwis finished on 219/6. Rohit Sharma had won the toss and decided to have a bowl. Kuldeep Yadav had been rested and Krunal Pandya had joined Chahal as the spin partner. (Full scorecard) Follow Ind vs NZ Live updates below:
India lose by 80 runs
Chahal is bowled by Mitchell as the Indians are all out for 139. This is the biggest loss for India by run margin. The Indians could have definitely done better at the top of the innings. The early losses hurt them and the wicket became a little difficult to bat on as the game progressed.
End of Dhoni’s innings
Southee bowls that short and Dhoni pulls that straight to the fielder at deep square leg. Dhoni goes for 39 as the Indians are out of this game. The question now is that whether they can bat the full 20 overs. That was almost a practice to the fielder.
15:40 hrs ISTFerguson sends back Bhuvi
There goes another one as the Indian players are now just waiting for this game to get over. They are no longer in the chase and it is all about batting out the remaining balls. Two overs left in the game and Dhoni would at least want to finish with some respectability for the team.
15:35 hrs ISTSouthee gets Krunal Pandya
That was almost the perfect bouncer as the ball takes the glove before lobbing up for the wicket-keeper to take a diving catch. The Indians are almost done with the chase here as the required rate moves closer to the 30 runs per over mark.
15:30 hrs IST102 needed off last 4
Can MS Dhoni and Krunal Pandya do the impossible here? The Dhoni of old would have loved to believe that he can. But what about the Dhoni of present? Kiwis will still want to send MSD back into the hut to breathe easy. Williamson would have seen enough of him in the last edition of the IPL.
15:20 hrs ISTDhoni hits first six of his innings
Not able to play aggressively due to the constant loss of wickets at the other end, Dhoni finally breaks free and sends Santner into the long-on stand. Will Dhoni pull out a miracle chase here? Things going to get only more difficult from here as the spinners are having a good time on this wicket.
15:10 hrs ISTSodhi gets DK and Pandya
No DK show tonight as Sodhi gets his man, caught well by Southee in the deep. Sweeps that and finds the fielder. India have their task cut out now as Hardik Pandya also walks back as he hits that straight to wide extra cover and another good catch here and this time it is the debutant Mitchell.
15:00 hrs ISTSantner gets Pant and Shankar
India in trouble as Pant goes trying too many things in the middle. Trying the reverse sweep and missing and then failing to see off the full ball from Santner as he goes for 4. Shankar needs partners at the other end to make this chase possible. India’s score reads 64/3. But that is not all. Santner now gets Shankar too in the same over. The score reads 65/4.
14:43 hrs ISTFerguson ends Dhawan’s stay
A brilliant yorker that first hits Dhawan’s toe and then crashes into the stumps at 151 kph. This was a quality ball and Dhawan goes for 29. This is not how the Indians would have wanted the chase to start. Pant joins Shankar in the middle. The score reads 51/2.
14:40 hrs ISTVijay Shankar showing his hitting prowess
18 runs from the over as Shankar is showing that he can hit the ball with as much ease as he can stand tall in the middle in trying conditions. Quite a surprise move to get him to come as the No.3 batsman, but so far so good for the Indians as Shankar and Dhawan are both looking to stay positive. India’s score reads 46/1 after 5 overs.
14:30 hrs ISTSouthee sends back skipper Rohit
Rohit Sharma failed to settle down and the otherwise vintage pull does not hit the middle of the bat and Lockie Ferguson picks up a blinder at the square leg boundary. Runs in and put in the dive. The New Zealand players are celebrating as they know the need of getting early wickets here. Rohit goes for 1.
14:25 hrs ISTDhawan dealing in sixes
Back to back sixes for the India opener as Dhawan is looking to punish anything on the leg stump. This is ordinary bowling here from the Kiwi bowlers and they must get their line right. If India chases this total down this would be IND’s highest successful chase in T20Is.
14:17 hrs ISTRohit and Shikhar take strike
Can India pull this one off? Chasing 220 is no easy task, but the duo of Rohit and Dhawan can do the impossible if they manage to settle down here. The wicket has been a belter and the pace has increased further with each passing over. But handling the swing will also be important for these two.
14:07 hrs ISTKiwis finish with a boundary
Khaleel’s good last over turns average as New Zealand finish with a boundary to pick 12 runs from the over. Two boundaries and four singles makes it a quality over to end. The wicket looks to have eased out further and the pace has improved and that could be just how Rohit and Dhawan would want the wicket to play. India will need 220 runs to win the opening T20I.
14:02 hrs ISTDK takes the catch of the season
Dinesh Karthik takes an absolute blinder in Wellington. Watch
13:56 hrs ISTBhuvneshwar gets Taylor
That one almost stuck on the top of the nails for Khaleel as Bhuvneshwar gets the all-important wicket of Taylor. The senior pro goes for a 14-ball 23 and the Indians are finishing really well here in the death overs. What looked like the total would cross 220 is now looking like will end on 210.
13:55 hrs ISTPandya gets Grandhomme
After DK drops a sitter to give Taylor a life, Siraj comes up with a brilliant catch under lights to send back Grandhomme. Pandya wears a look of relief on his face. Taylor though is looking in brilliant form here and the Kiwis will want the former skipper to stay at the crease till the end of the innings.
13:50 hrs ISTTaylor looking in good form
Typical Taylor show towards the end of the Kiwi innings as he first goes leg side to pick a double and then follows that up with a flat batted six over covers. Clearly the wicket is pacing up and that is a good sign for the Indian openers who will have their task cut out. Taylor will want to finish on a high.
13:40 hrs ISTKiwis lose two in two
Mitchell goes first, caught brilliantly at the long-on boundary by DK for 8 and then Chahal gets Williamson, caught well by Pandya for 34. This is just how the Indians would have wanted the death overs to start. Ross Taylor had just come to the crease and now there will be two new batsmen at the crease. Not the situation NZ would have wanted to be in after the start they got.
13:35 hrs ISTWilliamson looking in fine touch
The Kiwi skipper first brings up the team’s 150 with a six and then hits another one to show that he is shifting gears as the death overs are round the corner. This is quality batting from the New Zealand batsmen as they are mixing the boundaries with the quick ones and twos. Hardik Pandya clearly losing the plot here.
13:25 hrs ISTKhaleel cleans up Seifert
Not the perfect yorker by any stretch of imagination, but the job has been done. Khaleel gets Seifert for a well made 84 off just 43 balls. The Indians will now look to pick a few quick wickets to slow down the scoring rate. The Indian fans are celebrating in the stands.
13:20 hrs ISTSeifert show on display
The batsman definitely knows that it cannot get bigger than this. He is looking to shine on the biggest stage and has slowly moved towards his 100 here. He has looked to put every bad ball away and with proper cricketing shots here. The comparisons with Brendon McCullum definitely not something far off.
13:09 hrs ISTKrunal strikes
Tossed up ball, Munro looks to belt it over the top, does not time it well enough and is caught by the man at long on, right on the boundary ropes
13:06 hrs IST84 in 8 overs
This is slipping away from India. Rohit needs to decrease the pace of the game and look for that first wicket. Krunal continues
13:00 hrs ISTPandya brothers into the attack
First Krunal and then Hardik. Rohit has turned to the brothers to help India out of this blitz from the Kiwi batsmen. The two New Zealand openers have made the most of the powerplay and have put in 66 runs into the kitty in the first 6 overs. The Indian bowlers need to pull things back fast here.
12:50 hrs ISTMunro making his intentions clear
16 runs from the Khaleel over now with Munro starting the over with two sixes. There is no stopping the Kiwi openers here as both batsmen are looking to make most of the powerplay. Khaleel has been guilty of bowling it in the areas that Munro likes. The Indians have to find a quick fix to this. NZ’s score reads 44/0 after 4 overs.
12:45 hrs ISTTim Seifert showing his class
Tim Seifert is taking the attack to the Indian bowlers and has hit Bhuvneshwar for a six and a boundary and ends with 15 runs from the over. The Kiwis are on a roll here for sure and looking to take the attack to the Indians. They realise the need to start well and make use of the Powerplay.
12:40 hrs ISTMunro gets stuck into Khaleel
Even as Bhuvneshwar started well, Khaleel has been sent to the cleaners by Munro. 9 runs coming from the Khaleel over after Bhuvi gave away just 4. The Indian bowlers need to be clear here that they cannot let the Kiwi batsmen get a feel of conditions inside the powerplay.
12:30 hrs ISTBhuvneshwar starts proceedings for India
Bhuvi gets the new ball from captain Rohit Sharma and Colin Munro is opening the batting for the Kiwis. Dhoni can already be heard shouting out instructions from behind the wicket. India will want early wickets here so that the Kiwi batsmen don’t get a chance to settle down. A good wicket by the looks of it.
12:12 hrs ISTPlaying XIs
New Zealand (Playing XI): Colin Munro, Tim Seifert(w), Kane Williamson(c), Ross Taylor, Daryl Mitchell, Colin de Grandhomme, Mitchell Santner, Scott Kuggeleijn, Tim Southee, Ish Sodhi, Lockie Ferguson
India (Playing XI): Rohit Sharma(c), Shikhar Dhawan, Rishabh Pant, Vijay Shankar, Dinesh Karthik, MS Dhoni(w), Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal, K Khaleel Ahmed
12:03 hrs ISTRohit calls correctly
Rohit: We’re bowling first. We have had a good record chasing. Gives us another opportunity to see how we can bat second. Looks like a good pitch. Like I said on the 5th ODI, we wanted to bat second as there was some moisture on the pitch and challenge them. A lot of the guys who have played ODIs have gone back. Guys like Rishabh and Krunal are back and we need to give them some chances.
12:01 hrs ISTWhat do you reckon, skipper?
11:38 hrs ISTBack at the Westpac for the 1st T20I against New Zealand. Thoughts on the pitch? pic.twitter.com/nEKo7zgyr6
— BCCI (@BCCI) February 6, 2019
Impact of Rohit Sharma
Rohit needs just 36 runs to become the leading run-scorer in T20Is. Martin Guptill leads the pack, but the opener has been ruled out of the series owing to an injury which makes this series a great opportunity for the skipper to be the number 1 run-getter in this format.
11:33 hrs ISTWhich team should India play
We have tried to cobble up a combination, and we believe Khaleel will make a comeback as will Rishabh Pant. Why don’t you give it a read?
Here is our predicted XI?
11:25 hrs ISTHello and welcome
Right, after the tight win in Wellington and after clinching the series 4-1, the action now shifts to the shortest format. India take in New Zealand and are looking to win their first ever match in this format in the country. They are without Virat Kohli, but the team has enough firepower in their ranks to topple the hosts.
New Zealand, after the drubbing in ODIs, need to identify the players who can get the job done against a well-rounded Indian side.