In a short history of the T20I cricket, Kiwis have turned out to be India’s toughest opponents. The first time India beat New Zealand was in the 6th clash between the two. Till now, India managed to win only 3 out of 11 matches against the Kiwis. As the tour will kick on with the 5-match T20I series today, let me take you back down the memory lane and remind you of some of the nostalgic ‘India vs New Zealand’ T20I matches from the past.
1. Johannesburg 2007:
A classic T20 but probably forgotten in the limelight of the WT20 winning campaign!
This was the only match India lost in the tournament. Also, it was the only morning game India played in the tournament.
Brendon McCullum provided New Zealand a decent start but India pulled things back nicely with spinners.
However, an expensive 25-run over by Yuvraj Singh put New Zealand back in the driver’s seat and Jacob Oram & Craig McMillan took them to the total (190) which was looking out of India’s reach.
In reply, Gambhir & Sehwag took on Bond & Co in style. And in a blink of an eye, India scored 76 runs in the powerplay and the chase was truly on.
But then Kiwi skipper Daniel Vettori (4/20) took the center stage and Indian batsmen couldn’t find an answer to his variations in flight and pace. With some streaky boundaries, in the end, India got close but the game was long gone.
2. Christchurch 2009:
A six-hitting contest!
In the very first over Sehwag hit 3 sixes in the first 3 balls he faced. The short square boundaries in AMI stadium were quite luring. Whoever was coming in, was just trying to launch everything into stands. It felt like Team India was eying for 300 or something which then cost a flurry of wickets in the middle.
Yusuf Pathan almost did a Yuvraj-Broad until a magnificent catch at long-on by Jacob Oram stopped the carnage. But Raina 61*(43) held the innings together and took India to a respectable total 162/8.
With the target set, Kiwis approached the chase in a more methodical way. McCullum held one end and the other batsmen kept up with the required rate. In the end, they chased it down without much discomfort.
3. Wellington 2009:
A low scoring affair!
Despite a fine fifty by Yuvraj Singh 50(33), due to the lack of flourish at the end, India managed to post only 149/6 on the board. Shouldn’t it be a cakewalk for New Zealand? No.
A typical Dhoni applied the squeeze through the spinners. But once again Brendon McCullum had the last laugh who was holding one end throughout.
When 9 runs were required in 3 balls, two back to back boundaries sealed the game for them. The last ball desperate attempt by Rohit did not prove enough to take India to its first super-over finish.
4. Chennai 2012:
It was a comeback match for Yuvraj Singh after battling with cancer.
Once again it was Brendon McCullum 91(55) who single-handedly took New Zealand to a competitive total 167/5. He was quite severe against local boy Ashwin.
But unlike the previous two matches, here things were under control for India as they were chasing. It was looking like a stroll in the park as Virat Kohli kept hitting boundary after boundary. India needed 48 runs in 40 balls when Kohli 70(41) departed.
That’s when the Chennai surface started to show his colors, the ball started to hold on and Dhoni & Yuvraj struggled to find any timing against Oram & Franklin who were constantly taking pace off the ball.
Yuvraj got out in last over and India fell short by one run. It was one of those chases when you scratch your head why Dhoni left it for so late.
5. Nagpur 2016:
Among all the defeats, this one was the most shocking! Yes, it was the ICC T20 World Cup 2016, Super 10 match!
In the tournament’s opener, Kiwi boys stunned the hosts in a tailor-made rank turner. In terms of tactics and team combination, Kane Williamson showed the first glimpse of what kind of tactical genius he is.
They dropped both of their premium pacers Trent Boult & Tim Southee and decided to go with 3 spinners.
And the star Indian batting lineup totally surrendered to the Kiwi spinners. Chasing the target of 127, India were bowled out for only 79. The trio of Ish Sodhi, Mitchell Santner and Nathan McCullum shared 9 wickets among them.
6. Hamilton 2019:
A run-fest at Seddon Park!
New Zealand put up a mammoth total of 212 with the help of a blistering knock by Colin Munro 72(40). Of late India often was found guilty of giving up a big chase too early in T20Is but not this time around. Every batsman came out throwing his bat around and kept India alive in the chase throughout.
Be it Shankar, Pant or Hardik. Despite losing 5 wickets, Karthik and Krunal Pandya kept finding boundaries to keep them in the contest.
A six by each in the penultimate over brought down the equation to 16 runs in one over, in which Tim Southee held nerves to give India first-ever series loss in a 3-match series. Though the game was famously remembered for Karthik denying Krunal strike in the last over.
Okay, so those were some of the most memorable India vs New Zealand T20I matches from the past. We hope you enjoyed this quick trip down the memory lane.
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