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Pandya laments 'shocker' pitch after India sneak p…
India edge low-scoring thriller to tie T20I series…
Wales 23-55 New Zealand: All Blacks maintain 69-year dominance in Cardiff
By Sports Desk November 05, 2022
New Zealand eased to a 33rd consecutive Test win over Wales as Codie Taylor, Jordie Barrett and Aaron Smith grabbed two tries apiece in a 55-23 success in Cardiff.
The All Blacks have not lost to Wales in 69 years, a remarkable spell of dominance that was maintained as they scored at least 33 points in a 10th straight edition of this fixture.
This latest eight-try victory was ultimately every bit as straightforward as it appeared set to be when Taylor crossed twice in the opening 20 minutes, although there was a spell when Wales threatened to run their opponents close.
But every time the hosts came back into the match – as they did for the first time through Rio Dyer's dazzling debut try – New Zealand quickly moved through the gears to keep them at arm's length.
Barrett got on the scoresheet for the first time ahead of the interval, before a solo score from Smith stretched the All Blacks' advantage.
A lengthy review from the TMO awarded a Justin Tipuric try that looked to have restored Welsh hope, but it was one-way traffic in the final half an hour as Ardie Savea pulled the strings. He got the seventh try between further efforts from Smith and Barrett, with Samisoni Taukei'aho adding the final flourish.
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Pandya laments 'shocker' pitch after India sneak past New Zealand
India's stand-in captain Hardik Pandya lamented a "shocker" of a pitch at Ekana Stadium and called for better surfaces after a slender T20I victory over New Zealand.
The hosts edged past the Black Caps with one ball remaining in Lucknow, winning by six wickets in a low-scoring thriller to level the three-match T20I series.
New Zealand only managed 99-8 from their 20-over allocation on a difficult wicket but made India wait until the final over for victory as Suryakumar Yadav saw his side over the line with a vital 26 not out.
Pandya, captaining in the absence of white-ball veteran Rohit Sharma, was alongside Suryakumar at the end unbeaten on 15 but expressed his disappointment with the surface at home.
"I always believed we will finish the game," Pandya said. "It went quite deep, but that is how it is. In these kinds of games, it is important to not panic.
"Rather than taking risks, we rotated the strike. Having said that, this is a shocker of a pitch. We need to make sure we have better pitches. Even 120 would have been a winning total here.
"We kept to our plans, we made sure they did not rotate the strike, and the wickets kept falling. Dew didn't play much of a role because if you see they were able to spin the ball more than us.
"It was a shocker of a wicket. The ball was flying for even the fast bowlers."
The in-form Suryakumar continues to rise his stock within white-ball cricket, though his 31-ball 26 was a far cry from his usual flamboyance and aggressive shot-making.
Having blasted 112 and 51 in his two previous T20I appearances against Sri Lanka earlier in January, Suryakumar acknowledged an alternate approach was required on Sunday.
"A different version of [Suryakumar] today," he said after receiving the Player of the Match award. "Adapting to the situation was very important. After losing [Washington Sundar], I had to make sure I batted until the end.
"[Sundar's run out] was my mistake, I didn't see where the ball went. Of course, it was a challenging wicket, but you have to be able to adapt.
"We just needed one hit in the end, and it was very important to calm ourselves down.
"Before I got the winning runs, Hardik came up to me and told me you will hit the winning runs this ball. That gave me a lot of confidence."
With an ODI series victory already secured, India will look for a white-ball double over New Zealand in Wednesday's T20I decider in Ahmedabad.
India edge low-scoring thriller to tie T20I series with New Zealand
India thrillingly came out on top with one ball remaining to level their three-match T20I series with New Zealand after a remarkably tight second match on Sunday.
The hosts won by six wickets at Ekana Stadium but only just managed to reach the low target set by New Zealand during what seemed a poor innings that saw them finish on 99-8.
It was the first time the Black Caps had failed to reach 100 runs in a T20I against India, though it was not as bad as it first seemed on a difficult pitch.
Finn Allen's (11) reverse sweep attempt from Yuzvendra Chahal's (1-4) delivery saw him knock the ball on to himself and then the stumps for India's breakthrough, and Devon Conway (11) soon followed when caught behind by Ishan Kishan off Washington Sundar (1-17).
Glenn Phillips (5) was the third to fall victim to a botched reverse sweep, and Daryl Mitchell (8) also failed to reach double digits, with that pair removed either side of Mark Chapman (14) being run out.
Michael Bracewell (14) and Mitchell Santner (19 not out) formed one of only two stands to yield 20 runs, before New Zealand's innings petered out with only five in the final over.
India's response was not emphatic – they also failed to register a single six.
Shubman Gill (11) gave Allen an easy catch with a top edge off Bracewell (1-13) for an early boost, before Kishan (19) was run out and Rahul Tripathi (13) was caught at deep midwicket.
Suryakumar Yadav (26 not out) – aided ably by captain Hardik Pandya (15 not out) – ultimately dragged India over the line, getting just enough power on the penultimate ball to reach the boundary and take India to 101-4.
Suryakumar decisive when it counts
Having managed at least 47 runs in each of his previous three T20Is, Suryakumar is not used to struggling to amass significant totals.
Much like everyone else on Sunday, he could not quite find momentum with his 26 coming off 31 balls, but the fact he had the nous to be the only batter to break the 20-runs barrier should not be overlooked.
New Zealand bowlers give them a fighting chance
The batsmen should not take too much blame – pretty much all of them from both sides struggled on a wicket that Hardik criticised afterwards – but the Black Caps bowlers had plenty of work to do here.
The wickets did not tumble with quite the same regularity as when they were in bat, but with the ball they ensured the match remained tight – the fact they took it to the final over is commendable in itself.
Black Caps spinners consign India to T20I defeat after Mitchell fireworks
Daryl Mitchell bludgeoned a rapid unbeaten half-century before New Zealand's brilliant spinners consigned India to a 21-run defeat in the first T20I of a three-match series.
India condemned the Black Caps to a 3-0 ODI whitewash this week, but the tourists claimed their first victory of the tour in impressive fashion at JSCA International Stadium Complex on Friday.
Conway (52 from 35 balls) and Finn Allen (35 from 23) got New Zealand off to a flying start after they were put in by Hardik Pandya in Ranchi.
Washington Sundar (2-22) and Kuldeep Yadav (1-20) contained the Black Caps, but Mitchell provided the fireworks to get them up to 176-6 by scoring 59 not out from only 30 deliveries.
He took 27 off a nightmare final over from Arshdeep Singh, hitting three consecutive sixes to silence an expectant crowd.
India were in deep trouble on 15-3 in the fourth over of the run chase, Ishan Kishan bowled by a peach of a delivery from Michael Bracewell before Rahul Tripathi and the in-form Shubman Gill fell cheaply.
Newly crowned ICC T20I player of the year Suryakumar Yadav gave India hope with a classy 47, but he was on his way after holing out to Allen when trying to launch Ish Sodhi into the stands.
Stand-in captain Mitchell Santner (2-11) and Bracewell (2-31) bowled beautifully, while Lockie Ferguson (2-33) and Jacob Duffy (1-27) also made their mark as a maiden T20I half-century from Sundar (50no off 28) was in vain with India restricted to 155-9.
It was just a second win in 12 matches against India in the shortest format, giving New Zealand – without the likes of Kane Williamson, Tim Southee and Trent Boult – a 1-0 lead in the series.
Consistent Conway and Mitchell give Black Caps upper hand
Conway has been a revelation in all formats for the Blacks Caps since making his debut in 2020, and he continues to churn out the runs.
He laid the foundations for an imposing total with a ninth T20I half-century, finding the rope seven times and clearing it once before being dismissed by Arshdeep in the 18th over.
Mitchell then took centre stage, taking Arshdeep's bowling apart with final-over fireworks as he hit five sixes in all to register a fourth T20I half-century and give New Zealand the momentum.
New Zealand spin in to win it
The New Zealand spinners were outstanding, generating sharp turn and giving little away.
Bracewell set the standard, cleaning up Kishan with a brilliant delivery that pitched around middle and struck the left-hander's off stump.
Skipper Santner bowled 18 dot balls, while he saw the back of Gill – superb in the ODI series – and had Deepak Hooda stumped before running out Shivam Mavi with a direct hit.