It was an emotional roller-coaster ride for first-time Indian coach Rahul Dravid when India was up against New Zealand in the first T20 match of the three matches series. Additionally, it is also the first series for the Hitman, Rohit Sharma as the Indian Men’s Cricket T20 captain. The captain and the coach did not show much emotion when the Indian team successfully defeated the Black Caps by 5 wickets. However, one could feel that both wanted to win the game and start the series with a good win.
New Zealand, too had its ups and downs in the match. With the key man, Kane Williamson resting for the series, fast bowler Tim Southee captains the side. However, the New Zealand side did not look the same without him. Trent Boult did not look like a trouble for the Indian batsmen. And the New Zealand experienced bowler could not control his frustration on the ground. While he was able to take the wicket of the dangerous Indian captain Rohit Sharma, he had already been hit for a couple of boundaries, and the damage has already been caused with a smooth six by Sharma.
The batsmen looked in good form for the Black Caps as the team scored 164 runs in their 20 overs. One of the greatest spinners of the Indian team, Ravichandran Ashwin, was the star with the ball. He gave away just 23 runs in his 4 overs, getting two crucial wickets. Other than him, swing bowler Bhuvneshwar also looked in a good run taking 2 wickets in his quota. However, fast bowlers Mohammad Siraj and Deepak Chahar became an easy target for New Zealand batters, giving away 39 runs and 41 runs respectively in their 4 overs.
When India came to the pitch to chase the target, Rohit Sharma was the star with the bat. He scored 48 runs off 36 deliveries in his first game as the official T20I captain of the Indian Men’s Cricket Team. His Mumbai Indians team member, Suryakumar Yadav, was awarded the Man of the Match for his brilliant half-century. Yadav scored 62 runs in his innings, which included 3 big hits and 6 boundaries. Rishabh Pant scored the winning runs for the Indian team. Additionally, this win will boost the whole team’s morale after a dismal performance at the World Cup.
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