India secured a historic win in the Paytm T20 international series in the country, against New Zealand. This was the first win in a series of this format against the Kiwis by the men in blues. India’s record against New Zealand till this point had been abysmally poor. It was 5-0 to the favour of the kiwis. After two wins in the subcontinent, in New Delhi and Thiruvananthapuram, it stands at 6-2.

How it all began?

In Feroze Shah Kotla, on the 2nd of November, India was successful in finally achieving what it had been trying for their last five encounters. The brilliant New Zealand finally succumbed to the men in blue, after a superb knock from the opening pair of the Indian batting line-up, Rohit Sharma, and Shikhar Dhawan. Yuzvendra Chahal also produced a stunning performance. Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan’s partnership of 158 runs was India’s highest in this format of the game. India set a total of 202 for New Zealand to chase, which was also one of their best in the T20 format. With this win, India has achieved the target of winning against every opponent they’ve played in any format. Shikhar Dhawan won the man of the match award.

The Kiwis are no pushovers!

New Zealand won by 40 runs in the second match at Rajkot, where Colin Munroe’s phenomenal century of 59 balls (7 fours, and 7 sixes) helped them attain a target of 196. India failed to reach the target, after losing seven wickets. Trent Boult was one of the key bowlers of the Kiwi squad as he added another 4-wicket haul to his list of accomplishments. He picked up his form after a poor display against India in the first match of the series, where he conceded 49 runs from 4 overs. The Indian team failed to stop the Kiwi steamroller as they were outplayed in a brilliant display of cricketing genius.

Fans showed undying support!

The run-up to the third and final match of the series was fraught with excitement. It was being held in Kerala, at Thiruvananthapuram, at the Greenfield International Stadium. The locals were very enthusiastic about the match that had been allotted to their city as International cricket returned to their city after 29 years, and they joined in numbers to cheer for their team. Even though the rain did dampen the atmosphere, it could not tamper with their spirits. Due to bad weather, the cricketing skirmish was reduced to 8-hours per side.

Despite all the odds, India won against New Zealand…

India scored 67 for 5 wickets after batting first, with Manish Pandey’s 17 being the highest individual score. After repeated knocks through the back-to-back dismissals of Martin Guptill and Colin Munroe, the Kiwis couldn’t stand up to the task and lost the game with 61 runs on board, after losing 6 wickets. Jasprit Bumrah’s two-wicket haul after giving away 9 runs, guided the men in blue towards victory. The Kiwis deserve a fair amount of applause for providing top-notch competition. And, they fought the series very well. India proves its dominance in its own backyard once again in any format of the game. They have been unbeaten in the country since the loss to Australia in 2015.


Anurag Gaur

Endings are never happy, they're the saddest part! So give me a happy middle, and a very happy start!

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