India vs New Zealand, 1st T20I - Talking Points and Who Said What?

New Zealand won the 1st T20I convincingly by 21 runs at the JSCA International Stadium Complex in Ranchi, Jharkhand on Friday, January 27 to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match T20I series. The Black Caps looked a much better side throughout the game. Having lost the toss and been put to bat first just didn't seem to bother the Kiwis at all as they batted, bowled, and fielded confidently throughout the match.

Team India on the other hand, didn't quite look the team that had come on the back of a convincing 3-0 ODI series whitewash against the same opponents just a couple of days back. Though they won the toss and decided to take the advantage of the same, their plan didn't quite work against the Kiwis.

New Zealand batters made sure they go on an all-out attack right from the word go. From the openers till the middle order, each batter contributed to help them put up a challenging total of 176/6 in their 20 overs.

Finn Allen, who was consistently having poor outings played well for his 35 off 23 balls and gave a brisk start to the Kiwi innings. Daryl Mitchell top scored for the Mitchell Santner-led side with an unbeaten 59 off 30 deliveries. Washington Sundar bagged two scalps in his spell.

For India, however, the batting performance turned out to be very ordinary. They were reduced to 15/3 in just 3.1 overs, with Ishan Kishan, Rahul Tripathi and Shubman Gill succumbing cheaply to the Kiwi bowlers. Mitchell Santner, Michael Bracewell and Lockie Ferguson shared six wickets among each other. Washington Sundar was the lone fighter as he scored 50 off 28 deliveries.

Talking Points from India vs New Zealand, 1st T20I:

New Zealand batters much more confident

The first turnaround of this match was when New Zealand lost the toss and were put to bat and they made the most out of the situation. Reports suggested that batting second would be easier provided the dew factor, but that just didn't seem to come to play provided the way the Kiwi batters just exploded the Indian bowlers.

Daryl Mitchell blasted 27 runs off Arshdeep Singh at the death

That 27-run last over gave New Zealand the momentum and they came back firing with the ball. Daryl Mitchell chose the over to go all guns blazing and accumulated 27 runs including three maximums and one four.

Losing Captain, Hardik Pandya said:

"No one even thought that the wicket would play like that and both teams were surprised. But they played better cricket on this and that's why the result end up like that. Actually the new ball was turning more than the old one and the way spun, way it bounced it caught us by surprise. But somehow we pulled it back and were in the game till Surya and myself were batting. In hindsight, I don't think this wicket was 177, we were with the ball and conceded 20-25 runs. It is a young group and we will only learn from this. The way he bowled, he batted and fielded, it was Washington against New Zealand today. We needed someone who can bat and bowl, gives us a lot of confidence and it will help us going forward."

Winning Captain, Mitchell Santner said:

"It was a bit of a shock for everyone involved, how much it kinda spun in the second innings. But it was a great game and it was pretty tight at the end, we saw a lot of runs in the ODI series and it was nice to see the ball spin a bit more. I don't think we were ever safe, 170-odd was nice with Daryl hitting a couple over and he batted extremely well, we knew we had a sniff with 180. It was nice to chip some wickets in the powerplay and we had troubled with that in the ODIs. At the toss we were going to bowl because we know chasing is so good over here and especially with the dew. That's always the challenge (on captain using himself). You don't want to be seen doing the easy overs and stuff like that. We knew it was spinning in the powerplay and it was nice to chip one out."

Player of the Match, Daryl Mitchell said:

"It is nice to contribute to a score which helps us win a game. I thought the way the boys bowled at the end was pretty special. It is nice to take some momentum into the rest of the T20 series. The guys who went in early said it was pretty difficult against spin because of the tacky nature. It was my job to build a partnership and then take the onus on myself after Conway's departure. For me it is being really present and really clear, keeping it simple as possible and trusting my skills, not everytime it comes off in T20 cricket but it is always nice when you get a few off the middle."

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