New Zealand vs Australia 2021, 5th T20I - Martin Guptill Secures Comfortable Series-Winning Victory For New Zealand

The hosts New Zealand won the five-match T20I series against the visitors Australia after winning the final match of this series by 7 wickets with 27 balls remaining. With this victory, the Blackcaps won the series by a 3-2 margin.

After winning the toss in this series-decider game, Australian captain Aaron Finch chose to bat first. While Australia scored 142/8 (20 overs), New Zealand chased down that target in 15.3 overs after losing three wickets. While Martin Guptill won the Player of the Match award for his brilliant batting performance, another Kiwi star Ish Sodhi won the Player of the Series award for finishing this series as the leading wicket-taker (13 wickets in 5 matches).

New Zealand vs Australia 2021, 5th T20I

2nd innings (New Zealand innings): Martin Guptill scored 71 runs

The hosts New Zealand got a very good start as the openers Devon Conway and Martin Guptill provided a powerful start. While they scored 51/0 at the end of the powerplay, that opening partnership stretched to 106 runs. Guptill completed his half-century in 33 balls.

However, in the 12th over, Riley Meredith got two back-to-back wickets of Devon Conway (36) and skipper Kane Williamson (0). In the 15th over, Guptill lost his wicket in Jhye Richardson’s over after scoring 71 off 46 balls (7 fours and 4 sixes).

But Glenn Phillips’ unbeaten 34 off 16 balls (5 fours and 2 sixes) secured New Zealand’s comfortable match as well as series victory.

1st innings (Australia innings): Middle-orders failed to continue Aaron Finch and Matthew Wade’s strong setup

Youngster Josh Philippe was promoted to the opening position but Trent Boult dismissed him in the third over of the match when Philippe scored only 2 runs.

But then skipper Aaron Finch and Matthew Wade put the brilliant 66 runs partnership for the second wicket. Leg-spinner Ish Sodhi finally broke that partnership in the 10th over where he took the wicket of the opener Finch, who scored 36 off 32 balls (5 fours and only six). Glenn Maxwell quickly returned to the pavilion as he was dismissed by Mark Chapman for just 1 run.

Wade had 26 runs partnership with Marcus Stoinis for the fourth wicket but Trent Boult put a break on that partnership as he took the wicket of Wade for 44 runs off 29 balls (3 fours and 2 sixes). While Stoinis scored 26 runs in run-a-ball before Sodhi took the wicket of him, Mitchell Marsh (10) was the only other Australian to score a double-digit score in that innings.

Ish Sodhi finished that innings with the bowling figures of 4-0-24-3. Also, the pacers Tim Southee (2/38) and Trent Boult (2/26) got two wickets each.

Brief Scores: Australia – 142/8 in 20 overs (Matthew Wade 44, Aaron Finch 36; Ish Sodhi 3/24)

New Zealand – 143/3 in 15.3 overs (Martin Guptill 71, Devon Conway 36; Riley Meredith 2/39)

Result – New Zealand won by 7 wickets