Twitter Goes Berserk As India Stage Stunning Comeback With Ball To Beat New Zealand In Fifth T20I

Published - 02 Feb 2020, 05:08 PM | Updated - 23 Aug 2024, 06:36 AM

India, New Zealand
Tim Seifert plays a shot as KL Rahul looks on (Credits: Twitter)

India beat New Zealand by seven runs in the fifth and final T20I to register a historic whitewash. Despite Virat Kohli rested and Rohit Sharma out of the field with an injury, the Men in Blue performed brilliantly under KL Rahul to defend 163. New Zealand were 116 for 3 in the 13th over at one stage before India’s bowlers turned the tide and restricted the hosts to 156 for 9.

Chasing 164, New Zealand were off to a disastrous start as they lost three wickets for just 17 runs. Jasprit Bumrah dismissed Martin Guptill for 3 before Washington Sundar accounted for Colin Munro. Tom Bruce was then run out for a three-ball duck.

But before India could make further inroads in the game, Tim Seifert and Ross Taylor steadied the ship. The two initially adapted a cautious approach as New Zealand crossed the 50-run mark in the eighth over. At that stage, it looked like the game is set for a tight finish before Taylor and Seifert blasted Shivam Dube for 34 runs in the tenth over to put New Zealand on top.

Also Read: New Zealand vs India 2020: Here Is Why New Zealand Players Sported Pink Zinc On Their Faces

As a result of that big over, New Zealand raced away to 98 for 3 by the end of the tenth over. But India soon clawed their way back in the game thanks to some impressive bowling from their pacers. In the 13th over, Saini broke the stand by dismissing Seifert for 50 and conceded just 3.

In the following over, Bumrah dismissed Daryl Mitchell while conceding just three before Washington Sundar conceded three in the 15th over. Things then went from bad to worse for New Zealand as Shardul Thakur picked up two wickets in the 17th over to reduce them to 132 to 7. On the first ball of the 18th over, Saini dismissed a well-set Taylor for 51 to all but end New Zealand’s hopes.

With 21 needed from the final over, Ish Sodhi raised New Zealand’s hopes by hitting two sixes off Thakur but the hosts eventually ended up on 156.

Earlier, India rode on their stand-in skipper Rohit Sharma’s fifty to post a challenging total of 163 for 3 in the allotted 50 overs. With Virat Kohli rested for the last game, Rohit Sharma led the side. Sanju Samson once again failed to deliver and was out for just two before KL Rahul and Rohit took charge.

The two added 94 runs for the second wicket to lay the foundation for the good total before Rahul departed for 45. Rohit and Shreyas Iyer then joined hands in the middle and mixed caution with aggression to take the team towards a good total. But in the seventeenth over, India suffered a huge blow when Rohit had to retire hurt after scoring 60.

In the final three overs, Iyer and Shivam Dube managed to score only 23. Iyer remained unbeaten on 30 off 29 balls while Dube scored 6 from 5 balls.

Here is how Twitter reacted to the match:

https://twitter.com/sagarcasm/status/1223918192344485888

https://twitter.com/Punnajiaka/status/1223913206025818112

https://twitter.com/divyabaid07/status/1223909492229730306

https://twitter.com/saraf_iam/status/1223909416337985536

https://twitter.com/naalaYUCK/status/1223887118264459269

https://twitter.com/Abhijee22691599/status/1223906007530688512

https://twitter.com/nishant4_king/status/1223148962950987776

 

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India National Cricket Team New Zealand vs India 2020 Twitter Reactions
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