IND vs NZ: "We Felt Good About The Total" - Shikhar Dhawan After Losing Auckland ODI Against New Zealand

New Zealand Cricket Team had won the toss and opted to bowl first in the 1st ODI. The Black Caps surprisingly left out James Neesham from the playing 11. On the other hand. The Men in Blue handed caps to Arshdeep Singh & Umran Malik.

The youngster Shubman Gill notched up a half-century and was involved in a  huge opening partnership with Shikhar Dhawan of 124 runs. Indian Cricket Team managed to put in a mammoth total of 306-7 in which Shreyas Iyer top scored with 80 runs from 76 balls where he struck 4 fours and 4 sixes.

Shikhar Dhawan was looking ominous as he scored 72 runs in 77 balls and laid the foundation for the rest of the batters. New Zealand’s bowlers lost momentum in the last 10 overs as they gave away 96 runs and were looking a bit scratchy.

New Zealand had a terrible start to the chase as they lost 3 wickets for 88 runs inside 20 overs. It looked as if India would win with a huge margin but the skipper Kane Williamson & Tom Latham had other ideas as the duo notched up a partnership of 221 runs and won the 1st ODI match by 7 wickets with more than 2 overs remaining. Kane Williamson scored 94 runs in 98 balls whereas Latham scored a scintillating knock of 145 runs where he struck 19 fours and 5 sixes.

We felt good about the total- Shikhar Dhawan

During the post-match presentation, Shikhar Dhawan was asked about the match. “We felt good about the total. First 10-15 overs the ball did a lot. It’s a bit different than other grounds. Have to plan accordingly. Today we’ve bowled short of length and Latham attacked us there. That’s where he took the game away from us especially in the 40th over. That’s where the momentum shifted,” said Shikhar Dhawan.

Really enjoy playing here- Kane Williamson

“Really enjoy playing here. Would’ve been happier if we won but that’s part and parcel. They’re all young boys and lots of learning for them. Bowling side and fielding side as well (what areas need improvement?). We need to implement our plans more wisely and make sure we don’t make the batsmen play on their strength,” he added.

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