Colin Munro misses out on a rare T20I record

Colin Munro’s success in the International Twenty20 cricket has risen gradually ever since New Zealand promoted him as an opener. Munro amassed three centuries in the T20I format in the past one year with all of them coming in space of ten innings. Thus, the devastating batsman became the first player in the T20I history to score three hundreds. Beginning from the start of 2017, Munro aggregated a total of 496 runs in only 11 innings that includes two fifties alongside three tons.

In the first T20I game against Pakistan on Monday, Munro batted cautiously to take his team home in a low scoring game. Playing against his natural game, Munro scored unbeaten 49 off 43 balls with three fours and two sixes in chase of Pakistan’s total of 105. The opening batsman took a single on the first ball of 16th over when the Kiwis needed 14 more runs to win. Ross Taylor hit boundaries on 3rd and 4th deliveries of the over towards the deep midwicket region. He later drove the 5th delivery towards covers for a boundary to level the scores.

Only two players in the rare list

Hasan Ali delivered a bouncer over Taylor’s head which was called a wide to bring an end to the game. This meant Colin Munro remained on 49 missing out on his 4th consecutive fifty-plus score in the format by one run. He scored 58, 104 and 66 in his last three T20Is during the series against West Indies at home. Had Munro completed his fifty in this innings, he would have joined Brendon McCullum and Chris Gayle as the only players with fifty-plus scores in four consecutive T20I innings. McCullum achieved this feat in 2008/09 season while Gayle scored four in a row in 2012.

Earlier, Pakistan crossed 100-run mark thanks to Munro as he conceded 12 runs in the 20th over, his only over in the innings. Babar Azam struck Munro for a four and six before getting out for 41. New Zealand were 8/2 into their 4th over chasing 106 before Munro’s 49-run partnerships with Tom Bruce and Ross Taylor handed 1-0 lead in the 3-match series to the home team.

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