Handy cameos from Deepak Chahar and Harshal Patel following Rohit Sharma's fine half-century helped India post a total of 184/7.
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Team India captain Rohit Sharma smashed a 31-ball 56 to help the team post a total of 184 runs for the loss of seven wickets against New Zealand. Rohit’s knock comprised of five boundaries and three sixes with the same accumulated at a strike rate of 180.65. Ishan Kishan also seemed impressive during his 21-bal 29 which included six fours. Shreyas Iyer and Venkatesh Iyer provided valuable support, chipping in with a 20-ball 25 and 15-ball 20 respectively. However, Harshal Patel and Deepak Chahar were the players who ensured the perfect finish to proceedings. The former accumulated 18 runs from 11 deliveries, with the latter smashing 21 off 8 balls which included two boundaries and a six.
Mitchell Santner was the pick of the bowlers, accounting for three dismissals. Trent Boult, Adam Milne, Lockie Ferguson and Ish Sodhi provided quality support, chipping in with a wicket apiece.
Team India skipper Rohit Sharma opted to bat after winning the toss in the final T20I of the ongoing three-match series against New Zealand. Rohit stated that he wants to challenge his team as a batting unit, which was the factor that influenced his decision to bat on a pitch that looks a little sticky. Mitchell Santner has been named as the skipper of New Zealand for the final T20I, replacing Tim Southee who was the captain for the previous two matches.
Rishabh Pant stated that the team was looking to improve following the conclusion of the recently concluded T20 World Cup.
“After the WC, everyone was thinking that in what areas we can improve. As a group we have been talking about that a lot. We had to improve in the middle overs. In those two matches, we have ticked few boxes that we spoke in the team meetings. It’s going really well for us. As a kid I always dreamt of winning matches for India in any situation. I am ready to do whatever the team needs me to do. Happy to finish the match for the team. I can’t be complaining (about the workload) but the team management has given me offs from the next two Test matches. Hopefully I can recover well and do well in South Africa,” he said as quoted by Cricbuzz.
Glenn Phillips expressed a desire for him and his teammates to go out and deliver a fine display.
“We are gonna go out there and give it our best, like we do every game. India might have won the series, but we are here to put up a show, and hopefully we’ll be able to do that. The toss is out of our control and if we end up batting again today, it will be about assessing the wicket as much as possible, the way Guptill and Mitchell have started, that has been brilliant and Chapman in the middle has been quality. I think the best way to go about things is, come in and keep things fresh and stay positive. I try to be that batter in the middle order that can do whatever role is required, whether it is having a whack in the end, or stabilze the innings if we have a rough start,” said the cricketer.
