When two teams of high quality play each other in a Twenty20 International, it's not a sight you often see. On Sunday, January 29, India and New Zealand played a very different match in Lucknow, with no sixes hit all evening. In the game, the ball only touched the boundary ropes 14 times, and both teams combined to spin out 30 overs. In the end, the hosts won a close game in which they chased a goal of 100 with one ball left.
The bad start Despite Finn Allen's catch of Hardik Pandya for a boundary in the very first over, New Zealand never took control with the bat. Hardik started Yuzvendra Chahal in the fourth over after Washington Sundar's introduction at the opposite end gave a clear indication of what to expect on the surface. Allen successfully employed that tactic when he attempted a reverse sweep, but he missed the ball as it struck his leg and crashed into the stumps. The same thing happened to Devon Conway when he tried a reverse sweep, this time off Washington, but he got hit with a glove as Ishan Kishan made an easy catch. They were put on the back foot by those two losses, as New Zealand only scored 33 runs on the power play.
New Zealand is strangled by spinners A torrent of spin ensued. Hardik had seen enough in the powerplay, so he brought Kuldeep Yadav and Deepak Hooda into the attack to take full advantage of the circumstances. Glenn Phillips' stumps were rearranged after a second reverse sweep failed to produce the desired result, and they did not disappoint. As India took full control, Kuldeep got one to turn a mile to get rid of Daryl Mitchell.
Absolutely not. The pressure to score quickly increased as the spinners took control of the game. However, strokeplay was not possible due to the conditions. Mark Chapman also left after an unnecessary run out, and when Hardik came back into the attack, New Zealand would have hoped for some much-needed respite. However, he opened his account as well to end his spell on a positive note, while Arshdeep Singh made an impression when he bowled at the death. He took two wickets with the short ball, and Mitchell Santner was unable to score a boundary in the final over, leaving New Zealand with just 99. The visitors only found the boundary six times all together. In the end, Chahal only bowled two overs during the entire innings.
Santner used India's similar start as a model and introduced himself and Michael Bracewell early in the attack. The two spinners made a lot of turns on the surface, which was a problem for Ishan Kishan in particular, who at times appeared completely lost. But in the end, Shubman Gill had to leave because Bracewell got one to turn in very sharply into the batter, and Shubman Gill only managed to pull. India made 29 runs in the first six overs, four fewer than the visitors' total, but Ishan did score a boundary off the penultimate powerplay delivery.
New Zealand took it to a whole new level when India bowled 13 overs of spin. It's spin to the rescue once more. New Zealand struck in the first over only to spin. Glenn Phillips and Ish Sodhi took charge in the middle overs while Santner and Bracewell bowled in the powerplay. India was having a hard time, so New Zealand's spin barrage was relentless. They also lost players like Ishan and Washington Sundar to unnecessary runouts, putting their hopes in Suryakumar Yadav. On what turned out to be an incredible night, New Zealand bowled 17 spin overs in a row. Even though the pitch wasn't ideal for T20 cricket, the game kept everyone on the edge of their seats as the visitors made sure they won.
India were 87/4 after 17 overs of spin without stopping, requiring 13 more runs from the final 12 deliveries. Santner went to Lockie Ferguson for the first time because he didn't want to put it at risk at the end. Hardik ended a 45-ball drought to score a boundary, despite continuing to exert pressure with a few dot balls. The home crowd was delighted as the equation became six from the final six deliveries. When Suryakumar hit a straight shot back at Blair Tickner, New Zealand had another great chance, but the bowler missed the chance. Suryakumar then cleared the infield over mid-off when the final two deliveries required three runs to win the game and keep the series alive.
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