Local boy Kane Williamson sat out of the Mount Maunganui T20I, and Ross Taylor made a half-century in his 100th T20I in front of his family, but New Zealand still botched another match that they should’ve won. India had rested their regular captain Virat Kohli and their stand-in captain Rohit Sharma retired hurt on 60, after hurting his left calf, but Jasprit Bumrah and co. helped India rally and secure a 5-0 whitewash.
After Taylor had provided a throwback to his IPL heyday and shellacked 34 runs along with Tim Seifert in a Shivam Dube over, New Zealand needed 66 off 60 balls to pull one back in the series. This time they couldn’t even take it into a Super Over and by the time Ish Sodhi launched a pair of sixes in the last over, the game was all but up. Once Navdeep Sani had Seifert flapping a catch to midwicket for 50, New Zealand suffered another irreparable collapse, losing 6 for 25. After cramping Seifert for room, Saini returned to have a leg-side happy Taylor snicking behind for 53 off 47 balls. Bumrah, as is the norm these days, also played a crucial hand in India’s victory, yorking Daryl Mitchell and Tim Southee at the death.
Rahul in the thick of the action
Not too long ago, KL Rahul was a mere Mr. Fix It in India’s line-up, but he has now established himself as one of the key figures in India’s white-ball sides. Although he slowed down against spin, he made it to 45 off 33 balls, and closed out the series with 224 runs in five innings at an average of 56 and strike rate of just a shade under 145.
After Sanju Samson (2) opened once again and threw away another opportunity, Rahul set the early pace, cracking Southee for three boundaries in the third over, the pick of them being an exquisite lofted six over extra-cover. By the end of the Powerplay, Rahul claimed 33 off India’s 53.
Spinners Ish Sodhi and Mitchell Santner then tied him down in the middle overs with their clever variations in length and pace. From 33 off 17 balls, Rahul managed a mere 12 off his next 16 balls. As a result, he went searching for a scoring opportunity against Hamish Bennett and wound up scooping a leading edge to extra-cover. – Cricinfo
