7.52pm A solid, convincing win for India. A performance led by India's seamers, who set the match up by reducing NZ to 48 for 5. In the chase of 190, India got a decent start and from there, it was always going to need a miraculous performance. That they did not get. Kohli treated Dharamsala and many viewers to an exhibition in cover driving, among other delectable shots. So a rather convincing win for India to take the lead in the series.
Time for the presentation.
Kane Williamson: We had to weather the storm a little bit, the first 10 overs they bowled really well and some soft dismissals. Disappointing with the bat. A little up and down with sideways movement (regarding the pitch). We lost too many wickets too early. Looked a bit worse, so some good scrapping towards the end. India were too good, very good chasing side and they showed it today. We were below par in all areas, we need to step that up. We're a tough unit, so we need to stick together and have to play our best cricket to beat India."
MS Dhoni: Fantastic performance from the fast bowlers. We had no clue it would help the fast bowlers. Hardik exploited the good length, a short of a good length. Umesh is somebody who has been quite quick consistently, he has gone from fit to one of the fittest. Hardik is deceptive, you think he'd bowl 132, but he crosses 135 consistently. Both Mishra and Axar bowled well. They did go for some runs. If we did not take early wickets, it was a 280-300 wicket. Important to bat in the middle, I was in no hurry. The more deliveries I play, the better for me. At times, the toss can be very crucial in this series."
Hardik Pandya is the Man of the Match, on debut: "On a debut, getting the Man of the Match is special. This moment I will cherish in my life. Very happy. Good to be back, I was nervous a bit, but I bowled a lot in Australia and the domestic season. I wasn't looking to bowl fast, wanted to bowl with rhythm. On this wicket, I was focusing on a Test match length, a good length."
Amit Mishra: "Dhoni told me to go after the wickets, it's a good batting wicket. A good chance to prove myself. Anil bhai is a good help for me, teaching me how to bowl on flat tracks. Always talking about mental toughness."
END OF OVER:33 | 4 Runs | IND: 188/4 (3 runs required from 17 overs, RR: 5.69, RRR: 0.17)
- Kedar Jadhav10 (12b)
- Virat Kohli79 (80b)
- Mitchell Santner6-0-18-0
- Ish Sodhi4-0-28-1
There was an edge on the first ball of the over.
Apoorva Verma: "@Nikhil, class can't be described in a few matches. Jadhav is a newbie whereas Kohli has established himself at the stage" Again, just stating facts based on today's events.
Ashraf: " I've seen some stark contrast between cricinfo's commentary and TV commentary. A strong example is Dhoni's six today. Cricinfo described it as "not in control at all", while the TV commentator was praising Dhoni's touch and took his six as an example?" I don't believe you can drag a pull from off stump over fine leg and be in control of your stroke. It's just not the direction a ball would go to. He wanted to place his pull more towards backward square leg, but took the top edge. Hence, my statement.
Abey Joy: "Any mathematical possibility to get a century for Kohli here?? Like running on pitch and add 5 runs or something? " No.
END OF OVER:32 | 12 Runs | IND: 184/4 (7 runs required from 18 overs, RR: 5.75, RRR: 0.38)
- Virat Kohli79 (80b)
- Kedar Jadhav6 (6b)
- Ish Sodhi4-0-28-1
- Mitchell Santner5-0-14-0