India vs New Zealand 5th T20I: India Win Series 3-2 Despite Kiwi Fightback
India vs New Zealand 5th T20I ended with a statement from the home side. New Zealand chased down 192 in Hamilton with seven wickets and 12 balls to spare, but it wasn’t enough to stop India from taking the five-match series 3-2. On paper this was a dead rubber. India had already wrapped up the series with three straight wins, and the 5th match at Seddon Park looked like a formality. Nobody told the Black Caps.
New Zealand 195 for 3 (Seifert 93, Phillips 65*) beat India 191 for 8 (Kishan 62, Iyer 50, Milne 4-19) by 7 wickets.
India vs New Zealand 5th T20I: India Post a Competitive Total
New Zealand won the toss and chose to field. India’s top order has been in fine touch through this series, with Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson both getting off to quick starts in the earlier games. Today, though, both were gone for single figures. Adam Milne was the man responsible, using the new ball to great effect and making life very difficult for the batters up front.
Luckily for India, there were plenty of players in form, and Ishan Kishan and captain Shreyas Iyer stood up when it mattered. Both made half-centuries at a brilliant strike rate, with Kishan scoring 62 and Iyer 50. At the 10-over mark, India were in a great position at 112/2 after 10.1 overs, and a big total looked on the cards. Then Kishan fell, and the momentum slowed.
Smaller but valuable contributions from Naman Dhir and Nitish Kumar Reddy helped India recover, and they finished on 191/8. On a flat pitch with short boundaries, it was a defendable total, but it could have been a lot more. Milne ended with 4-19, a superb spell that stopped India from pushing on in the closing overs.
India vs New Zealand 5th T20I: Seifert and Phillips Take the Game Away
After the innings break, it was the Black Caps’ turn to bat. Arshdeep Singh, India’s best bowler, was right on the mark and struck in the second over, removing Finn Allen. Allen has had a decent series, but you always felt there was a bit more to come from him. It was not the start New Zealand wanted, and it got worse before it got better.
But then Lady Luck stepped in. Tim Seifert was dropped on 13, and India would pay dearly for that. He made 93 off 50 balls, including five sixes, falling just seven runs short of a deserved century. By then the game was already gone. He took 20 runs off a single Bhuvneshwar Kumar over, and New Zealand were 59/1 at the end of the powerplay.
Daryl Mitchell chipped in with a useful contribution along the way, but the player who finished the job was Glenn Phillips. He ended unbeaten on 65 off 38 balls, with eight fours and three sixes, and shared an 86-run stand off just 42 balls with Seifert for the third wicket. He sealed the win with a boundary in the 18th over, taking New Zealand to 195/3.
Phillips was named Player of the Series, which feels unusual for someone on the losing side. But he did nothing wrong all tournament, and he did the business again in this India vs New Zealand 5th T20I.
What’s Next for India and New Zealand
India have won the series, but there are still areas to work on. If this T20 side wants to take on the likes of Australia and England in the format, the bowling in the closing overs and the middle-order consistency will need sharpening. Today showed how quickly a good total can look ordinary when the opposition get going.
For now, though, it’s time to rest. The players have just a few days to recharge before the five-match ODI series begins on 4 November at Eden Park in Auckland. India’s one-day squad is led by Shubman Gill and includes Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, so the 50-over leg should bring plenty of star power. Two Tests follow, the first starting on 19 November at the Basin Reserve in Wellington.
Expect another close contest. India and New Zealand sit at number one and two in the official ODI rankings, and if this series is anything to go by, there is very little between the two sides.
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