NEW DELHI: Sensational Suryakumar Yadav produced a magical hundred while bowlers put up a strong all-round performance as India crushed New Zealand by 65 runs in Mount Maunganui to go 1-0 up in the three-match T20I series.
In the form of his life, Suryakumar hit his second ton of the calendar year to power India to 191 for 6 in challenging conditions. In reply, New Zealand never got going in the steep chase, bundling out for 126 in the 19th over. After the first game of the series was washed out in Wellington, a win now has ensured that India will not lose the T20I series.
Although it was a clinical performance from Team India in all the three departments as they outplayed the hosts, the Kiwis did have a few moments of their own but failed to capitalise on them. Here's a look at the key moments in the second T20I that India won in a commanding fashion.
Pant 'no show' at the top - With weather conditions favouring the bowlers, Kiwi skipper Kane Williamson had no hesitation in opting to bowl first after winning the toss. Despite having in form Shubman Gill in the squad, skipper Hardik Pandya and the team management decided to go with Rishabh Pant at the top of the order alongside Ishan Kishan. But the move did not turn out the way India expected. Pacers Tim Southee, Adam Milne and Lockie Ferguson bowled tidy opening spells, not allowing the India openers to score freely in the Powerplay. Pant's struggle (6 off 13) finally ended in the final over of the Powerplay as India once again failed to capitalise the fielding restrictions, scoring 42 runs in the first six overs.
Ishan missed out after getting a start, Shreyas hit wicket - In the absence of Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav was promoted to the no.3 slot and he meant business from the word go. Surya along with Ishan Kishan steadied India after Rishabh Pant's departure inside the powerplay but a scratchy innings from Ishan (36 off 31) was put to an end by Ish Sodhi in the 10th over. At the halfway mark India's score read a decent 75 for 2 with the Kiwi bowlers managing to bowl pretty well despite the rain break that halted the match for over 25 minutes. Shreyas Iyer's return to international cricket was too below par as he got out hit wicket for 13 in the 13th over as India looked for the acceleration.
Dazzling SKY stunned Kiwis - Although India lost Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer in quick time in the middle overs, Suryakumar Yadav, who came inside the powerplay was pretty well settled by the time Shreyas walked back in the 13th over. Surya then exploded and went after the bowlers all-guns blazing. With another hard-hitter Hardik Pandya at the other end, Surya had the license and he grabbed the opportunity with both hands, taking the Kiwi bowlers to all corners of the park. Surya got to his fifty in the 16th over off 32 balls and after that it was mayhem in Bay Oval. As fours and sixes rained all over, Surya in the blink of an eye got to his hundred in the 19th over. With the dazzling century, Surya became only the second Indian to hit two hundreds in a calendar year after Rohit Sharma. With the help of 11 fours and 7 sixes and a strike rate of over 217, Surya's unconventional power-hitting took India to a strong total. While the rest of the India batters scored 69 off 69 balls combined, Surya (111 not out off 51 balls) delivered the knockout punch to the Kiwis.
Unyielding powerplay in steep chase - Still recovering from the Suryakumar assault, New Zealand in the steep 192 chase got off to a poor start, losing Finn Allen second-ball. With the scoreboard pressure and early loss of wicket, New Zealand were on the backfoot right from the start in the chase. The trio of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh and Mohammed Siraj bowled beautifully, not giving away easy boundaries as the Kiwis managed just 32 runs in the powerplay in the big chase.
Spin show - After a strong start from the India pacers, spinners took over and continued to attack the Kiwi batters. The likes of Washington Sundar and Yuzvendra Chahal bowled brilliantly, choking the Kiwi batters for runs. With Hardik Pandya not bowling due to a neck strain, it gave Deepak Hooda an opportunity to showcase his bowling skills. And the offie stepped up in a big way, producing an exceptional performance. The spin trio shared 7 wickets between them as New Zealand's chase just nosedived after the halfway mark. While Chahal got Kiwi big guns Glenn Phillips and James Neesham, Hooda (4/10) got rid of Daryl Mitchell and cleaned up the lower order to hand India a 65-run victory.
