Guwahati: Scintillating fifties from Abhishek Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav helped India break new ground in the history of chasing as they demolished a target of 154 in just 10 overs, reducing the third T20I into a colossal mismatch and wresting an unassailable 3-0 lead against New Zealand here on Sunday. Aided by a blinding cameo from Ishan Kishan, India were barely bothered after the bowlers made short work of New Zealand’s batting to cruise to an eight-wicket win.
Jasprit Bumrah (3/17), Ravi Bishnoi (2/18) and Hardik Pandya (2/23) didn’t allow New Zealand batters to gain any momentum despite a fighting 40-ball 48 by Glenn Phillips. But the real mayhem was wreaked by Abhishek who was averaging a boundary almost every ball mayhem, reaching his fifty in 14 balls and ending with 68 off just 20 balls, Suryakumar finishing on the other end with 57 off 26.
New Zealand’s bowling impressed for only one ball when Sanju Samson was dismissed for a golden duck. Matt Henry bowled length and Samson tried to flick it but the ball brushed his thigh pad and knocked over his off stump.
With scores of 10, 6 and now 0, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say Samson is under the pump to hold his place in the World Cup eleven. Samson’s wicket translated into another early chance for Kishan who started his innings by hammering Henry for 6, 6, and 4 off consecutive balls. Sharma joined the proceedings in the next over from Jacob Duffy, clubbing a six and two fours to ensure India were 32/1 after two overs.
Kishan’s dismissal to Ish Sodhi in the fourth over came against the run of the play, as he failed to clear Mark Chapman at deep midwicket. But so in the zone was Abhishek that he kept attacking New Zealand to help India to their quickest ever team fifty — in just 19 balls.
He then raised his fifty in the sixth over after thrashing Duffy for an incredible 4,1,6,1,4,6. Suryakumar once again took his time to start but once he had his eye in, the India captain took heavy toll on Sodhi and Mitchell Santner, forcing them to be spectators to one of the most brutal assaults ever that translated into an unbeaten 102-run stand in just 40 balls.
While bowling, first over wickets was the theme of India’s first half. Third ball of Harshit Rana’s first over, Devon Conway skipped down the track to hoick the ball over mid-off but the bat turned and he ended up miscuing it. It would have still probably cleared the infield but Hardik Pandya moved well to time his jump perfectly to land an absolute stunner of a catch.
Fourth ball of his first over, Pandya bowled short to Rachin Ravindra, prompting him to pull but he pulled too well, picking out Ravi Bishnoi in the deep. Brought in the sixth over, Jasprit Bumrah struck first ball with a 137.1 kph fuller delivery that angled in and castled the stumps of Tim Seifert who tried to play inside the line.
Those dismissals completely derailed New Zealand’s innings for a while. Between the fifth over and the eighth over — both bowled flat, straight and quick by Ravi Bishnoi — New Zealand hadn’t hit a boundary. That 24-ball drought was finally broken in the ninth over when Kuldeep Yadav was carted around for 19 runs — including two tall sixes — by Mark Chapman. Shivam Dube then came as India’s sixth bowler within 10 overs, and was promptly dispatched for a four and six by Chapman to help New Zealand reach 75/3 at the halfway stage.
A partnership of 52 off 40 balls was brewing between Chapman and the ever dangerous Glenn Phillips when Bishnoi finally got his due, inducing a faint outside edge off Chapman’s bat that Sanju Samson held well behind the stumps.
More timely was the dismissal of Philips in the 16th over, Bishnoi again getting in the thick of action with a short but slow ball that Philips holed out to Kishan at deep midwicket. Mitchell Santner picked up from where he had left at Raipur, scoring a couple of boundaries off Dube, but regular wickets kept their innings in check. Bumrah cleaned up Kylie Jamieson and ran out Matt Henry off a flat throw from Kishan in the deep in the 18th over before returning in the 20th over to dismiss Santner first ball, meaning New Zealand could only crawl to 153/9.
