Iyer fireworks give India win in T20 opener in New Zealand
WELLINGTON, Jan 24: Shreyas Iyer guided India to a six-wicket victory over New Zealand in the first Twenty20 international at Eden Park in Auckland on Friday as the tourists showed few signs of fatigue or jet lag.
KATHMANDU, November 22: It was yet another comprehensive victory for India as they beat New Zealand by 73 runs to secure a 3-0 clean sweep in the T20I series.
This was India's second-successive clean sweep victory against New Zealand in a T20I series, having registered a 5-0 win over the Kiwis at their own turf in January 2020. India's lower-middle order played a key role in steering India to a strong total of 184/7 before Axar Patel (3/9) rocked the New Zealand run-chase with three quick wickets early on.
Chasing a target of 185, New Zealand were bowled out for 111 with Martin Guptill top-scoring with a fine 36-ball 51. Earlier, India, after opting to bat first, had put up 184 runs on the board for the loss of seven wickets. Skipper Rohit Sharma top-scored for Team India with his 56-run knock. Rohit added 69 runs with Ishan Kishan (29) for the first wicket. Later, Shreyas Iyer (25), Deepak Chahar (21*), Venkatesh Iyer (20) (and Harshal Patel (18) played good cameos with the bat and guided India to a strong score.
For New Zealand, stand-in skipper Mitchell Santner was the stand-out bowler with his figures of 3/27 in four overs.
India clinch the series with an unassailable lead of 2-0 after a seven-wicket win against New Zealand powered by half-centuries from KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma.
Chasing 154 for a series win, India cruised along with the help of a 117-run opening stand between KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma.
Despite Tim Southee's attempt to rescue New Zealand with the ball, the total fell below par to make a match out of it in tough bowling conditions.
Earlier, New Zealand started their innings with a flier, however, India bowlers at the death restored parity to restrict the visitors within achievable limits.
Lethal opening pair
New Zealand were put in to bat, and the opening pair of Martin Guptill and Daryl Mitchell ensured they were on track to post a competitive target with conditions suggesting heavy dew in Ranchi.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar - bowling the first over - was taken apart by Guptill for 14. India did get an opportunity within the first over as Rahul ran back from mid-off in an attempt to send Guptill packing, but spilling out of his hands.
With difficulty in gripping the ball making life tougher for the bowlers, New Zealand openers made the most of it with a 48-run opening stand. Guptill batted clinically for his 15-ball 31, clattering 3 fours and 2 sixes before Deepak Chahar snared his wicket in the fifth over.
The blow did not cap the scoring rate as much as India would have hoped for. The visitors finished the Powerplay with 64/1 as the in-form Mark Chapman joined Mitchell on the crease to keep the board ticking.
Ashwin, Axar steer India to safe waters
Ravichandran Ashwin and Axar Patel bowled in tandem during the middle overs. In the second over of his spell, Axar got hold of Chapman's wicket who walked back looking to clear the long-off but found KL Rahul who swallowed the catch.
Mitchell's stay at the crease was brought to an end by debutant Harshal Patel who got his man with a well-disguised cutter - Mitchell heaved it long-on where Suryakumar Yadav completed the catch.
Glenn Phillips and Tim Seifert undertook the rebuilding but as the scoreboard pressure mounted, Seifert succumbed to Ashwin after the reverse sweep didn't go according to plan.
India pullback in the final five
At the fifteen over mark, New Zealand had the platform set for a big finish with 125 runs and seven wickets intact. However, a masterful display of death bowling architected by Patel, Kumar and Chahar allowed only 28 runs in the final five.
Phillips' cameo of 34 off 21 balls came to end after he holed out to deep square leg off Patel's bowling. With runs hard to come by for James Neesham, Kumar's economical over yielded the wicket in the final ball of his spell -- edge and caught by Rishabh Pant.
The final 23 balls of New Zealand innings saw zero boundaries. The tremors were evidently felt on the final score -- New Zealand finishing with 153/6.
Rohit, Rahul riot
The India openers meant business when they set up an opening stand of 117 runs. Rahul led the assault with a 49-ball 65 but it was Rohit in the tenth over who pivoted the impetus in India's favour. Rohit walloped a couple of sixes off Mitchell Santner's bowling - one over mid-wicket and another across wide long-on.
Rahul carried forward the momentum to up the ante with a floury of boundaries against Adam Milne and Trent Boult in subsequent overs.
Southee rebels but Pant takes India home
New Zealand captain returned with a stand out performance of 3/16, snaring the all-important wickets of Rahul, Rohit and Suryakumar Yadav.
Rahul attempted to take Southee down but the deception of pace employed by the bowler meant the ball fell short of the boundary into the hands of the fielder at deep square leg.
Southee then picked Rohit with a slower bouncer who departed for 55 runs off 36 deliveries and Suryakumar (1) in the space of three deliveries.
However, Venkatesh Iyer and Rishabh Pant took India over the finish line with seven wickets in hand and 16 balls to spare, courtesy of back-to-back sixes from Pant.
The sides will play each other in Kolkata in the third and final T20I of the series on 21 November. E A PART OF
India kicked off their new era in T20Is with a win over New Zealand at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur.
India beat New Zealand by five wickets in the first T20 International to go 1-0 up in the three-match series on Wednesday.
Chasing 165 for the win, India were in command for three-fourth of the game but faltered in the death overs. New Zealand made a spirited comeback in the game but fell short eventually as the home side got the win with two balls and five wickets remaining.
Earlier, half centuries from Martin Guptill and Mark Chapman helped New Zealand post a par-total of 164.
New India captain Rohit Sharma won the toss and opted to field first against New Zealand.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar had been left out from the side after India's first match at ICC Men's T20 World Cup when they tasted defeat against Pakistan. But after being brought back into the XI in the home series against New Zealand, Bhuvneshwar fired immediately as he castled Daryl Mitchell for a golden duck.
After the early loss, New Zealand towered a 109-run stand with Martin Guptill and Mark Chapman at the crease. Chapman reached his maiden half-century in style when he punished a full-toss from Axar Patel to mid-wicket for a six.
The visitors had laid the foundation for a big finish after they managed 110 in 13.1 overs, however, Ravichandran Ashwin's arrival to bowl his final over of the spell dented the flourish. Ashwin snared the set Chapman for a fine innings of 63, followed by Glenn Phillips for a duck to finish with 2/23.
Guptill too played an important hand of 70 off just 40 deliveries, clattering 3 fours and 4 sixes. On the first ball of the 18th, Guptill tonked Deepak Chahar for a 98-metre maximum, however, immediately on the next ball Guptill was caught in the deep -- mistiming to Shreyas Iyer.
India then pulled back strongly, swinging the momentum in their favour as they conceded 20 runs in the final three, setting themselves up for a chase of 165.
In response, India got off to a flying start, courtesy of Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul. The new Indian T20I captain was in the mood, as he smashed Trent Boult and Tim Southee for two fours and a six each to bring up the 50-run partnership inside five overs.
The introduction of spin reaped immediate rewards for Tim Southee as Mitchell Santner struck off his very first ball, with Rahul holing out in the deep.
The spinners kept Rohit in check, not allowing him to score freely but Suryakumar Yadav found the boundaries regularly, thus ensuring Rahul's wicket didn't derail the chase.
The two batters particularly targeted Todd Astle who went for 34 runs in his three overs.
Rohit Sharma eventually got out two runs short of a well-deserved half-century as he fell for Trent Boult's slower short ball trap, mistiming the pull to short fine leg.
Suryakumar Yadav continued to take the attack to the New Zealand attack, bringing up his third T20I half-century in style, hitting Lockie Ferguson for a maximum. Boult brought New Zealand's hopes alive with the wicket of Suryakumar for 62.
New Zealand turned the screws on India after the wicket, giving away just 11 runs in the next 2.2 overs to bring the equation down to 10 off the last over.
With Astle going for runs, Southee turned to Daryl Mitchell to bowl the final over.
Debutant Venkatesh Iyer eased the nerves in the dugout with a four but fell trying to reverse sweep off the very next ball. A couple of wides in the final over from Mitchell eased the pressure and Pant eventually got India across the finish line with a four.
Ahead of the New Zealand v Australia ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021 final, let’s have a look at the teams' record against each other in T20I cricket and ICC tournaments and their top players.
New Zealand and Australia knocked out the two top-ranked teams in the semi-finals, in England and Pakistan respectively, to seal their places in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021 final on 14 November in Dubai.
Neither team has won the men's T20 World Cup so far – Australia came closest in 2010, finishing runners-up – so the tournament will have a first-time winner.
Looking at their head-to-head record, Australia hold a slight edge in T20Is: Since winning the first T20 international ever played, Australia have won eight more against their neighbours, while New Zealand have won five, including in a Super Over.
At the men's T20 World Cup however, New Zealand took the honours in the only meeting between the sides. In the 2016 edition in India, New Zealand posted 142/8, before using pace off to keep Australia to 134/9. Mitchell McClenaghan was Player of the Match for his 3/17, while Corey Anderson and Mitchell Santner took two wickets each.
The last time these two teams met at a World Cup final was in 2015, when the trans-Tasman neighbours co-hosted the 50-over World Cup. Although Brendon McCullum's men had edged Michael Clarke's side in the group stage, the final at the MCG went comprehensively Australia's way.
New Zealand lost their captain early that day, and could make only 183, which Australia chased down with seven wickets to spare for their fifth World Cup title. Mitchell Johnson and James Faulkner took three wickets each, while Mitchell Starc had two to take down the Black Caps explosive line-up.
Among the key performers in this match-up will be Aaron Finch, the Australia captain. Finch has 251 runs against New Zealand in T20Is, the most by any Australian man, at an average of 62.75 and a strike-rate of 144.25. His figures include two fifties, 22 fours and 11 sixes in just seven innings between the sides.
Glenn Maxwell (206 runs in nine innings at 157.25 strike-rate) and David Warner (158 runs in seven innings at a strike-rate of 156.43) are two others in green and gold who have done well against the Kiwis.
Among the Black Caps, Martin Guptill has enjoyed the challenge of Australia, and played in all but two of the 14 matches between the teams. In 12 innings, he has 435 runs at an average of 36.25 and strike-rate of 152.09. He has two fifties and a hundred against them. However, the 105 in 54 balls came in a losing cause, with Australia chasing down a target of 244 with five wickets and seven balls to spare.
They will miss Devon Conway, who has been ruled out of the final with a hand injury. Conway was in great touch in five matches against Australia earlier in the year, making 192 runs at an average of 48, including a top score of 99*.
Among the bowlers, Ashton Agar’s numbers provide a case for his selection, as the leading wicket-taker for Australia in this match-up: 13 wickets at 16, with a best of 6/30.
Interestingly, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood are yet to play against the Black Caps in T20Is.
For New Zealand, Ish Sodhi has made the most trouble in this contest, taking 16 wickets in nine matches at an average of 15.68 and going at 7.38 runs an over.
Trent Boult has 10 wickets against them (average 22.70, economy 7.87), while Santner and Tim Southee have nine each. Jimmy Neesham has been expensive against Australia, picking up just two wickets at 39.50, with an economy of 13.16.
KATHMANDU, November 10: England is facing New Zealand on Wednesday in the semi-final match of ICC T20 World Cup to be played in Abu Dhabi.
When England last met New Zealand in an ICC white-ball tournament, there was little to separate the two teams after 50+1 overs each. England claimed the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2019 title only by the barest of margins in that match at Lord's.
Since then, New Zealand have insisted that that heartbreak is behind them. They have gone on to lift the ICC World Test Championship trophy, and come into this encounter with personnel who weren't in the middle for that Lord's match and don't carry those scars. For the team, this tournament is simply another chance to be rewarded with some silverware for the quality and consistency they have maintained across formats in the past few years.
Here are things to know about these two teams:
Fixture details
The match: England v New Zealand, Semi-final 1
Time: 6:00pm local time, Wednesday 10 November
Venue: Zayad Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi
ENGLAND
Position: First
Their road to the semi-final
England got their campaign off in spectacular fashion, bowling West Indies out for 55 and chasing it down in just 8.2 overs for a crushing first win that ultimately made the difference in net run rate as they went through at the top of their group. Moeen Ali set up the win with two early wickets, but it was his fellow spinner Adil Rashid who returned the pick of the figures – four wickets for two runs in 2.2 overs.
Bangladesh were the next to fall foul of the England juggernaut, with Ali again in the wickets before Jason Roy hit a quickfire 61 in an easy chase. And Jos Buttler’s blistering 71 made astonishingly short work of a chase of 126 against Australia, with England reaching it in just 11.4 overs.
The huge NRR advantage set up by that trio of crushing wins gave England a huge chance of progressing as they went into the final two matches of their Super 12 campaign. But they were made to work hard in Sharjah, with Sri Lanka pushing them close despite Buttler’s brilliant century.
Defeat to South Africa in the final group game ultimately didn’t cost England top spot, despite both teams and Australia all finishing tied on eight points, with that positive NRR doing its job in the end.
Star performers
Jos Buttler – The tournament’s second-highest run-scorer has been the obvious star for England through the Super 12 stage. His century against Sri Lanka was the highlight of course, but over five matches Buttler has scored 240 runs at an average of 120.00 and a strike-rate of 155.84. Those are astonishing numbers.
Chris Jordan – The form of England’s experienced death-over specialist was a big concern coming into the tournament. Jordan had been extremely expensive in an England shirt for some time and would have been at severe risk of being dropped had injuries not begun to mount up. But Jordan’s returns have been excellent, especially in those overs at the end of the innings. If the 33-year-old can deliver at the business end it makes England’s attack a far more stable unit.
NEW ZEALAND
Position: Second
Road to semi-finals
New Zealand's T20 World Cup campaign got off to a rocky start when they were defeated by five wickets by Pakistan in their opening match. Just as when Pakistan beat India, the nature of the loss raised question marks over New Zealand's credentials as contenders.
They quickly put those questions to bed by trouncing India by eight wickets as their all-star attack dismantled a highly vaunted batting order. It was Trent Boult who did the majority of the damage as India were restricted to just 110, and the Kiwis chased it down with five and a half overs remaining.
Scotland pushed them in their third match, coming within 16 runs of chasing down a target of 172 and there was a scare against Namibia too, but by the time the Black Caps reached their final group match, they had their fate in their own hands.
And they made no mistake against Afghanistan to once again seal their spot in the finals of an ICC event. It was Boult and Tim Southee who did much of the damage to restrict Afghanistan to 124/8, and the chase was conservative but comfortable.
Star performers
Martin Guptill - The veteran opener has once again been New Zealand's Mr Reliable in the format, with his brutal 93 off 56 against Scotland proving a crucial performance given how tight that match looked at times.
His 28 against Afghanistan set up New Zealand’s chase in exactly the manner required, and all opponents will eye the opening batter as one of the big threats in this Black Caps team.
Unsurprisingly he finishes the Super 12 stage as the team's highest run-scorer.
Trent Boult - New Zealand's star fast bowler has been humming at the showpiece event, proving both dangerous and economical.
His 3/20 against India set New Zealand on a path that would see them win four matches on the bounce to reach the semi-finals, and he delivered a consistent quality throughout the Super 12 stage.
