Keeper-batter Sanju Samson stood up for India in a record run chase as India chased down 226 against New Zealand at Christchurch. Sanju Samson roared like a lion under the lights in the chase. But before that, it was Glenn Phillips’ masterful unbeaten 82 runs off 40 balls, alongside useful contributions from the openers Finn Allen and Tim Seifert and Bevon-John Jacobs’ brilliant cameo ensured the Kiwis got to 225/4 in 20 overs to set things up.
In reply, India came out all guns blazing through Sanju Samson, who made 67 off 33 balls while Abhishek Sharma made 29 off 11 balls. Shreyas Iyer made 42 off 28 balls, and Naman Dhir made an unbeaten 42 off 15 balls alongside Axar Patel, who also played a cameo as India produced a team performance to win by 4 wickets to take a 1-0 lead in the 5-match series.
Glenn Phillips’ Fiery Unbeaten 82 powers New Zealand to a massive 225/4 in 20 overs
Put into bat first on a fresh pitch and a glorious evening, keeper-batter Tim Seifert and Finn Allen came out to open the batting for New Zealand while Bhuvneshwar Kumar had the ball in hand for India. After a quiet first couple of overs, the Kiwis got going and took the attack to the Indian bowlers with both Allen and Seifert going great guns. The Indians felt the pressure now.
The opening duo put on 49 for the first wicket in 5 overs before Seifert fell for 24 off 17 balls with 3 fours and one six to his name to Mayank Yadav. Daryl Mitchell came out to bat and looked at his elements as he got underway with a maximum over long-on. The duo of Allen and Mitchell took New Zealand to 65/1 in 6 overs of powerplay. The duo kept the tempo going and added 31 for the second wicket before Allen fell for a good-looking 45 off 24 balls with 5 fours and 2 sixes to his name to Axar Patel as Tilak took the catch in the deep.
Glenn Phillips came out to bat next. Mitchell and Phillips got together and tried to forge a partnership of note. The duo took the score at the halfway stage to 98/2 in 10 overs. Mitchell tried to keep up the momentum and was dropped by Abhishek Sharma at long-on as the batter got a lifeline on 16 before the batter cut loose as well. The duo added 42 runs for the third wicket before Mitchell fell for 28 off 19 balls with 2 fours and one six to his name to Arshdeep Singh, and Bhuvneshwar Kumar took the high catch.
Bevon John-Jacobs came out to bat next and got off the mark with the maximum straight as an arrow. Jacobs and Phillips continued the tempo and took the Indian attack head-on. Phillips grew in confidence while Jacobs went berserk as well. The duo added 73 runs for the 4th wicket in double quick time before Jacobs was run out for 31 off 16 balls with 3 sixes to his name. Michael Bracewell came out to bat next and survived a close LBW call due to excellent use of DRS.
It was Glenn Phillips who provided the finishing kick as Bracewell was a mere spectator at the other end. Phillips converted his fifty into a significant score and acted as the finisher as well. The duo added 30 runs in the last 15 balls as the Kiwis ended with a massive 225/4 in 20 overs. Phillips was special with his unbeaten 82 off 40 balls, with 8 fours and 3 sixes to his name, while Bracewell was unbeaten on 7 off 6 balls. 8 extras were given by the fielding side.
It was a leather hunt for the Indian bowlers. Mayank Yadav finished with 1/40 in 4 overs. Arshdeep Singh finished with 1/45 in 4 overs. Axar Patel finished with 1/51 in 4 overs. Bhuvneshwar Kumar went for 49 runs in 4 overs. Nitish Kumar Reddy finished with 0/40 in 4 overs. Just 5 bowlers were used by the Indians. India now needed 226 runs to win off 20 overs.
Sanju Samson’s fiery half-century lays the platform for a record run chase for India
Chasing a massive 226 for the win, keeper-batter Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma came out to open the batting for India while Matt Henry had the ball in hand for New Zealand. After a relatively quiet start, the Indian openers went berserk with both matching stroke for stroke. Sanju Samson showed his class as he dazzled under the lights, with Abhishek doing his bit.
The duo massacred the Kiwi bowlers in the powerplay and set things up for the rest of the batting in the middle phase. Sanju was dominant and got to his fifty in 23 balls while Abhishek was doing his bit. The duo put 93 runs off 35 balls before Abhishek fell for 29 off 12 balls with 2 fours and 3 sixes to his name to Michael Bracewell. Tilak Varma came out to bat next and got off the mark as India’s powerplay score was 94/1 in 6 overs of the powerplay.
The Kiwis then started to mount a fightback in the middle phase of the game. Tilak really struggled out there and gave the momentum back to New Zealand. Samson and Tilak added 22 runs for the second wicket before Sanju fell for 67 off 33 balls with 8 fours and 4 sixes to his name as he was cleaned up by Mitchell Santner, the captain. Captain Shreyas Iyer came out to bat next.
Just two runs were added to the tally before Tilak fell for a struggling 6 off 11 balls to Michael Bracewell. Ishan Kishan came out to bat next. Just 5 more runs were added to the score before Ishan fell for 1 off 3 balls to Santner as the Kiwis were back in the game with India at 122/4 in 10.3 overs. Axar Patel came out to bat next and gave some impetus to the innings. Axar kept the tempo as he was dropped on 13* and he carried on his merry ways.
Captain Iyer showed his class and, alongside Axar, got India’s ship back on track. The duo accelerated the run rate and added 45 runs for the 5th wicket before Axar fell for 24 off 14 balls with 3 fours and one six to his name to Lockie Ferguson. Naman Dhir came out to bat next. Things got tight for the Indians in the death overs, but Naman released the pressure on his captain.
Santner went off the field and came back to bowl his final over and gave away 19 crucial runs. The duo of Naman and Shreyas built a match-winning partnership that took the game away from the hosts. Some lapses in the field happened from the Kiwis that they have to work on in the future. But Naman and Shreyas played audacious shots and got the team past the 200-run mark. The duo added 43 runs for the 6th wicket before Shreyas fell for 42 off 28 balls with one four and two sixes to his name to Adam Milne. Shreyas was earlier dropped on 27 by Finn Allen, which proved to be costly.
The equation boiled down to 16 off 11 balls when Nitish Kumar Reddy joined Naman in the middle. Nitish stood there as Naman provided the finishing touches in the end and kept his cool under pressure. The duo added 20 runs off 9 balls as the match went to the last over, but Naman held his nerve to take India over the line in a record run chase. Naman was unbeaten on 42 off 15 balls with 5 fours and 2 sixes to his name while Nitish was unbeaten on 2 off 3 balls. 17 extras were given by the Kiwis as India finished with 230/6 in 19.4 overs.
New Zealand suffered with the ball, with only the spinners shining through. Michael Bracewell was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 2/37 in 4 overs. Mitchell Santner finished with 2/39 in 4 overs. Adam Milne finished with 1/43 in 3 overs. Lockie Ferguson finished with 1/34 in 3 overs. Matt Henry finished with 0/57 in 3.4 overs. Nathan Smith finished with 0/20 in 2 overs. So, India won the contest by 4 wickets to take a 1-0 lead in the 5-match series. Sanju Samson was awarded the Player of the Match Award.
What Lies Ahead
So, India leads the series 1-0 and will look to take a 2-0 lead in the 5-match series when the teams meet on Saturday at the same venue from 12:30 PM IST. New Zealand will hope to roar back like a lion in the next game inside 48 hours. Let’s see how the second game pans out in this long 5-match series. India had a good start in this cracking game.
Also Read: NZ vs IND: Glenn Phillips’ Fiery Innings Demolishes India