Virat-led India (Ki)win rain-affected match

India made a couple of changes to their playing (Pat)eleven – Axar and Mohammed Siraj made way for Manish Pandey and Kuldeep Yadav.

New Zealand made just one change to the eleven that last played the Indians – Adam Milne made way for Tim Southee.

On winning the toss, Kane Williamson, New Zealand’s skipper, inserted the hosts.

It rained before the start of the match. Hence, the ground was wet.

The first Powerplay of India’s innings – which was the mandatory Powerplay – was between the first and the second over. They scored 14, without the loss of a wicket.

Shikhar Dhawan, whose run-a-ball innings included a boundary, scored half-a-dozen. Fourteen balls into the match, he was caught by Mitchell Santner. Southee broke the 15-run stand.

The second-wicket pair didn’t get off the (Shar)mark. Rohit, whose nine-ball innings included a boundary, scored eight. The next ball, he was caught by Santner off the bowling of Southee.

Virat Kohli, India’s skipper, scored 13. His six-ball innings included a boundary and a six. Eight balls later, he was caught by Trent Boult. Ish Sodhi broke the 15-run stand.

Iyer, who faced half-a-dozen balls, scored (Shrey)as many. Eleven balls later, he was caught by Martin Guptill. Sodhi broke the 18-run stand.

India scored 50 off half-a-dozen overs (36 balls). New Zealand had conceded a couple of extras at that point.

Pandey, whose 11-ball (Col)innings included a boundary and a six, scored 17. Ten balls after Iyer’s dismissal, he was caught by de Grandhomme. Boult broke the 14-run stand.

Hardik Pandya, whose innings included a six, scored 14. He was unbea‘ten’.

Mahendra Singh, who D(hon)idn’t face a ball, was unbeaten.

New Zealand eventually conceded three extras. India scored 67 for the loss of five wickets off eight overs.

Each of the four bowlers bowled a couple of overs apiece. Santner, who conceded 16, was wicketless. Boult, who conceded 13, picked up a wicket. Sodhi and Southee picked up a couple of scalps apiece. While the former conceded 23, the latter conceded 13.

The first Powerplay of New Zealand’s innings – which was the mandatory Powerplay – was between the first and the second over. They scored 11, for the loss of a couple of wickets.

Guptill, who faced three balls, scored a run. An over into the chase, Bhuvneshwar Kumar broke the eight-run stand.

The second-wicket pair didn’t get off the mark. Although his six-ball (Col)innings included a six, Munro had no reason to be in seventh heaven – three balls later, he was caught by Sharma off the bowling of Jasprit Bumrah.

The third-wicket pair put on 20. Williamson, who faced 10 balls, scored eight. Eighteen balls later, Pandya ran him out.

The fourth-wicket pair didn’t get off the mark. Glenn Phillips, whose nine-ball innings included a couple of boundaries, scored nine. The next ball, he was caught by Dhawan off the bowling of Yadav.

De Grandhomme, whose innings included a couple of sixes, scored 17. He was unbea‘ten’.

Henry Nicholls, who faced four balls, scored a couple. Nine balls later, he was caught by Iyer. Bumrah broke the 11-run stand.

The sixth-wicket pair put on (Dho)nine. Tom Bruce, who faced a couple of balls, scored four. His runs came by a boundary. Four balls later, Pandya and the wicketkeeper ran him out.

New Zealand scored 50 off 7.1 overs (43 balls). The number of extras them had conceded at that point gave India no reason to be in seventh heaven.

Santner, who faced four balls, scored three. He was unbeaten.

India eventually conceded eight extras. New Zealand, who scored 61 for the loss of half-a-dozen extras off eight overs, won by half-a-dozen runs. Pandya bowled an over, conceding 11. He was wicketless, as was Yuzvendra Chahal, who bowled a couple of overs, conceded eight.

Yadav bowled an over, conceding 10. He picked up a wicket, as did Kumar, who bowled a couple of overs, conceding 18. Bumrah bowled two overs, conceding nine. He picked up a couple of scalps.

India won the three-match series 2-1.