IND vs NZ Highlights: Rahul’s calm hand guides India to narrow four-wicket victory

Updated on: Jan 11, 2026 9:41:33 PM IST

IND vs NZ Highlights: KL Rahul's unbeaten 29* was key as India defeated New Zealand by four wickets. Meanwhile, Virat Kohli narrowly missed out on a ton, slamming 93 off 91 balls, laced with eight fours and a six.

Key Events

4:04 PM IST, Jan 11INDIA WIN BY 4 WICKETS!
4:02 PM IST, Jan 11India need 5 in 8 balls!
3:52 PM IST, Jan 11India need 18 runs in 18 balls
3:47 PM IST, Jan 11EDGED AND TAKEN! OUT!
3:41 PM IST, Jan 11India need 34 in 30 balls!
3:37 PM IST, Jan 11DROPPED!
3:26 PM IST, Jan 1156 needed off the last 8 overs
3:21 PM IST, Jan 11IYER OUT ON 49! Jamieson again, and India in trouble
3:12 PM IST, Jan 11TWO IN AN OVER FOR JAMIESON! Jadeja falls early
3:06 PM IST, Jan 11AND GONE! VIRAT KOHLI OUT ON 93
2:56 PM IST, Jan 11Kohli into the 90s
2:40 PM IST, Jan 11200 up for India
2:29 PM IST, Jan 11Shreyas Iyer cashes in against the spinner! 15 off the over
2:20 PM IST, Jan 11Shreyas Iyer in on return
2:13 PM IST, Jan 11Gill picks out Phillips at mid-off! Out on 56
2:04 PM IST, Jan 11Fifty for Shubman Gill too! 145/1 after 25
1:55 PM IST, Jan 1150 for Kohli!
1:48 PM IST, Jan 11Both batters into the 40s, IND 122/1 after 20
1:34 PM IST, Jan 1199/1 after 16
1:17 PM IST, Jan 11Kohli gets lucky, inside edge past the stumps – and Gill picks up 6!
1:08 PM IST, Jan 11Kohli gets going with a pair of boundaries!
1:02 PM IST, Jan 11ROHIT SHARMA GONE! Chipped into the air and departs, 39/1
12:57 PM IST, Jan 11Glenn Phillips almost pulls off another wonder-catch! Gill gets another chance
12:52 PM IST, Jan 116, 4! Rohit begins to unleash
12:48 PM IST, Jan 11There's the pull shot for six! Trademark Rohit
12:43 PM IST, Jan 11Gill gets going with 4 now!
12:37 PM IST, Jan 116/0 after 3
12:27 PM IST, Jan 11Back for the chase! Rohit Sharma takes strike against Jamieson
11:54 AM IST, Jan 11NZ finish on 300/8
11:48 AM IST, Jan 11286/8 with last over to play
11:42 AM IST, Jan 11Prasidh responds well! Mitchell has to walk on 84
11:40 AM IST, Jan 114, 6, 4! Mitchell turns the heat up
11:32 AM IST, Jan 11Mitchell connects with one for six, 10 off the over
11:28 AM IST, Jan 11250/7 with 5 overs to play
11:19 AM IST, Jan 11Mitchell losing partners as Foulkes chops on; Siraj strikes again
11:16 AM IST, Jan 11Excellent fielding! Shreyas Iyer hits bullseye and Bracewell walks back
11:09 AM IST, Jan 11Daryl Mitchell reaches 50 – 227/5 after 42
10:49 AM IST, Jan 11Jaffa from Prasidh! Crashes through Hay's guard, top of the stumps
10:45 AM IST, Jan 11196/4 after 37
10:35 AM IST, Jan 11Kuldeep strikes! Removes Phillips
10:26 AM IST, Jan 11Mitchell counter-attacks with some big shots
10:08 AM IST, Jan 11Siraj does strike! Good change from Gill, removes Young
9:59 AM IST, Jan 11Gill goes back to Siraj against new batters
9:52 AM IST, Jan 11Harshit Rana does it again! Breaches Conway's defence to knock him over
9:50 AM IST, Jan 11Pressure slowly building again
9:49 AM IST, Jan 11Harshit Rana using plenty of slower balls
9:48 AM IST, Jan 11Will Young comes in, Gill turns to Jadeja
9:41 AM IST, Jan 11Harshit Rana comes back and does the trick! Dismisses Nicholls, breaks partnership
9:39 AM IST, Jan 11Nicholls makes the drop pay, looking comfortable
9:38 AM IST, Jan 11Conway beginning to tee off
9:33 AM IST, Jan 11Conway, Nicholls reach fifty on consecutive balls; 100 partnership up
9:28 AM IST, Jan 11Luck goes against Kuldeep! Same over, top edge falls in no-man's-land
9:27 AM IST, Jan 11Another chance goes begging! Over the head of Sundar at the boundary
9:13 AM IST, Jan 1179/0 after 16 overs
9:06 AM IST, Jan 11Kuldeep comes on to try and break growing partnership
9:00 AM IST, Jan 1150 stands as powerplay ends
8:48 AM IST, Jan 11Washington Sundar introduced as Gill looks for a difference-maker
8:36 AM IST, Jan 11Shot! Conway gets a move on
8:29 AM IST, Jan 11DROPPED! Kuldeep puts it down
8:23 AM IST, Jan 1113/0 after 4
8:16 AM IST, Jan 11First boundary as Siraj strays onto Nicholls' pads; 7/0 after 3
8:11 AM IST, Jan 11Harshit Rana also concedes just the 1
8:07 AM IST, Jan 11Just 1 off the first over
8:05 AM IST, Jan 11Siraj finding plenty of swing early
8:01 AM IST, Jan 11Ready to go! Kohli leads the huddle
7:53 AM IST, Jan 11Kotambi Stadium's first ODI – but the stats from List A matches
7:40 AM IST, Jan 11New Zealand's playing XI – Kristian Clarke earns his debut
7:36 AM IST, Jan 11India's playing XI for 1st ODI
7:32 AM IST, Jan 11Shubman Gill wins the toss – that's two in a row for India! Opts to bowl first
7:15 AM IST, Jan 11NZ using a rotated squad, but plenty of heavy-hitters
7:00 AM IST, Jan 11Half an hour to the toss
6:50 AM IST, Jan 11Important but limited year of ODI cricket for India
6:40 AM IST, Jan 11Seamers need to stand up in Jasprit Bumrah's absence
6:30 AM IST, Jan 11India's predicted XI
6:15 AM IST, Jan 11India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: New year but RoKo look to march on
6:00 AM IST, Jan 11India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Shreyas Iyer and Shubman Gill return
5:45 AM IST, Jan 11Dhruv Jurel drafted into the squad
5:30 AM IST, Jan 11Hello and welcome!

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Highlights: India's KL Rahul plays a shot.

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Highlights: KL Rahul's calm hand came India's rescue when it mattered the most on Sunday in the first ODI against New Zealand. Starting off slowly, Rahul was at 14 off 17 balls, with an injured Washington Sundar for support. The pair took a streak of three singles in the 49th over, and then Rahul woke up, justfying his cautious start. He smacked Kristian Clarke for back-to-back fours and then a six, as India got to 306/6 in 49 overs (Target - 301), winning by four wickets. Meanwhile, Rahul (29*) and Sundar (7*) remained unbeaten. Harshit Rana also played a crucial knock, smacking 29 runs off 23 balls, making it easier for Rahul. The hosts got a strong start in the run chase, as openers Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill took on the New Zealand bowlers from the get-go. Rohit failed to capitalise on his start, eventually departing for 26 off 29 balls. Then Gill built a partnership with Virat Kohli, and the captain lost his wicket to Adithya Ashok, for 56 off 71 deliveries. Kohli narrowly missed out on a ton, slamming 93 off 91 balls, laced with eight fours and a six. Meanwhile, Shreyas Iyer missed out on a fifty, losing his wicket to Kyle Jamieson for 49 off 47 balls. ...Read More

Earlier, India restricted New Zealand after the visitors had a strong start to the first innings, with Henry Nicholls and Devon Conway piling on 117 runs for the first wicket. India dominated the middle overs to pull back the Kiwis with some strong bowling, but Daryl Mitchell got set before pushing the run-scoring at the death. He fell on 84, but ensured the Blackcaps could finish on 300/8. Two wickets apiece for the three seamers used.

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI Playing XIs

India Playing XI: Shubman Gill (c), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna

New Zealand Playing XI: Devon Conway, Henry Nicholls, Will Young, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Hay (wk), Michael Bracewell (c), Zakary Foulkes, Kristian Clarke, Kyle Jamieson, Adithya Ashok

Follow all the updates here:

Jan 11, 2026 3:03:35 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Conway, Nicholls reach fifty on consecutive balls; 100 partnership up

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Henry Nicholls reaches his half-century. Making the most of the extra life he has been given, and 100 up as well with that single.

The very next balls, Conway smashes Washington over covers for four more, and that's his fifty as well! This partnership taking things easy.

104/0 after 20.

Jan 11, 2026 2:58:41 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Luck goes against Kuldeep! Same over, top edge falls in no-man's-land

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Conway survives again! Another attempted sweep, this time it's a big top edge. Could go anywhere, but with third and fine inside the circle, it lands smack bang in the middle of both! India not getting these going there way.

Jan 11, 2026 2:57:36 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Another chance goes begging! Over the head of Sundar at the boundary

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: India's fielding hasn't been good enough today! Conway goes for an aerial sweep, looks to be straight to Sundar – but he is four or five steps inside the boundary, so it just evades him and hits the cushions on the full.

Kohli is perplexed, asking Sundar why his positioning was that far inside. 12 metres inside the boundary, as per the broadcast, and it looped over him!

Jan 11, 2026 2:43:57 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: 79/0 after 16 overs

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Fair to say that this first hour of play has belonged very strongly to New Zealand. India haven't been able to generate too many chances, hoping now that they can try and force an error.

Jan 11, 2026 2:36:56 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Kuldeep comes on to try and break growing partnership

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Shubman Gill turns to his trump card, who will be hungry to make up for the drop and break this partnership. Can he settle in quickly?

Jan 11, 2026 2:30:00 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: 50 stands as powerplay ends

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: India remaining patient, but NZ openers looking quite comfortable now, happy to tick it along. India operating with Washington and Prasidh at the moment – holding back Kuldeep Yadav, who will be keen for some redemption for the drop when he gets the ball in hand.

Jan 11, 2026 2:18:07 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Washington Sundar introduced as Gill looks for a difference-maker

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: The seamers beign handled a little more easily by the opening batters in the last couple of overs, so Gill turns to Washington to switch things up. 4-run over to get going for him.

Jan 11, 2026 2:06:48 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Shot! Conway gets a move on

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Great shot! Conway picks the slow one from Siraj, and drives it through a narrow off-side gap on the up. Not an easy shot, but he's hit that perfectly.

29/0 after 7.

Jan 11, 2026 1:59:59 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: DROPPED! Kuldeep puts it down

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: That has to be takes! Wide from Harshit, Nicholls swipes at it, flies to Kuldeep at deep third. It's at a good height, he makes the distance, and it's a pretty simple chance – but he shells it! That's poor fielding from the spinner, that has to be taken.

Jan 11, 2026 1:53:26 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: 13/0 after 4

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: The openers taking their time, leaving outside off well at the moment. Not taking too many risks at all so far. Harshit overpitches though, and Conway can lean through it for four more.

Jan 11, 2026 1:46:58 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: First boundary as Siraj strays onto Nicholls' pads; 7/0 after 3

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Too leg-side-ish from Siraj. Easy for Nicholls to clip away off his hips, square of deep fine leg. Runs away for four.

Jan 11, 2026 1:41:58 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Harshit Rana also concedes just the 1

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Economical start for India with the new balls. Rana around the wicket to the left-handers early on.

Jan 11, 2026 1:37:19 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Just 1 off the first over

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Good tight first over from Siraj, finds his line early. Will be looking for the right length to extract movement.

Harshit Rana from the other end.

Jan 11, 2026 1:35:07 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Siraj finding plenty of swing early

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Siraj takes the first over up against Conway, and the southpaw going for his shots. The seamer finding plenty of movement early on, but will want some results early on.

Jan 11, 2026 1:31:32 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Ready to go! Kohli leads the huddle

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: India's players ready up in the field, settling in as the crowd cheer them on. Virat Kohli leads the team as they gee up for the first international contest of the year. Devon Conway and Henry Nicholls to open the batting.

Jan 11, 2026 1:23:25 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Kotambi Stadium's first ODI – but the stats from List A matches

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: This is the first time this stadium is hosting, of course, but there have been a few List A matches int he Vijaz Hazare Trophy. 6 to be exact, and in all six, the teams winning the toss opted to chase. However, it's a pretty good balance in terms of chasing and batting first – teams batting first have won 4 of the 6 matches. Good news for the Kiwis, with an average first innings score of 284.

Jan 11, 2026 1:10:07 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: New Zealand's playing XI – Kristian Clarke earns his debut

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: The Kiwi team comes in with a good mix of experience and youth, but the debutant in the team is bowler Kristian Clarke.

Devon Conway, Henry Nicholls, Will Young, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Hay (wk), Michael Bracewell (c), Zakary Foulkes, Kristian Clarke, Kyle Jamieson, Adithya Ashok

Jan 11, 2026 1:06:50 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: India's playing XI for 1st ODI

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Three spinners, three seamers, good balance, but the lower middle order only with Rahul as the specialist.

Shubman Gill (c), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna

Jan 11, 2026 1:02:57 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Shubman Gill wins the toss – that's two in a row for India! Opts to bowl first

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Shubman Gill finally has the toss go his way – that has been a rarity for him and this ODI team! Opts to bowl first, and no big shockers in the team either – Arshdeep is the seamer who misses out. Team news next.

Jan 11, 2026 12:45:05 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: NZ using a rotated squad, but plenty of heavy-hitters

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: With the Kiwis also gearing up for what is bound to be a tricky World Cup next month, this is not a full-strength ODI unit. This is an opportunity to give several of the fringe players in the set-up some excellent exposure on an away tour to one of the world's best teams, and Michael Bracewell's team will still have plenty of veteran presence – Devon Conway, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, but a team all about its youth and potential otherwise.

Jan 11, 2026 12:30:46 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Half an hour to the toss

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: 30 mins from the toss in Vadodara. Both teams will likely prefer to chase when the day gets a little darker and the lights come into effect, and will back their spinners through the afternoon. Will be interesting to see if runs on the board is the call either team makes instead, especially given how good India's chasing is.

Jan 11, 2026 12:20:31 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Important but limited year of ODI cricket for India

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: This year starts off with a focus on T20 cricket due to the World Cup, but gradually, focus will begin shifting to more and more ODI cricket. At the moment, India have 18 ODIs lined up for the entirety of 2026, with three matches in Bangladesh currently uncertain. There still remain far more T20I matches over the course of the year, but nevertheless, India are one of the teams who know their combination and what they will look like in South Africa in 2027. It is just about sharpening and polishing now.

Jan 11, 2026 12:10:08 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Seamers need to stand up in Jasprit Bumrah's absence

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: There are plenty of frontline fast-bowling options at India's disposal in this tour – more than the team usually carries. With Bumrah and Hardik Pandya rested for the T20 World Cup next month, the burden in this series will be carried by Mohammed Siraj and Arshdeep Singh, with Harshit Rana and Prasidh Krishna behind them. India need their next tier of seam bowlers to begin standing up and raising their levels – this is the time to begin their preparations and to really knuckle down and elevate their games.

Jan 11, 2026 12:00:45 PM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: India's predicted XI

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Shreyas Iyer and Shubman Gill will walk into the playing XI while Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana are expected to start as the frontline pacers. The only toss up for a place will be between the two all-rounders Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar.

India's predicted XI: Shubman Gill (captain), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh.

Jan 11, 2026 11:45:13 AM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: New year but RoKo look to march on

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: It's 2026 but Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma will aim to march ahead from where they left off in the previous year. The duo have silenced the critics for good and it's all about building on momentum. The duo have enough match practice behind them as they recently featured in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.

A depleted New Zealand is unlikely to leave the duo sweating. Hence, it's expected to be a gala time for RoKo!

Jan 11, 2026 11:30:20 AM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Shreyas Iyer and Shubman Gill return

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer are fully fit and they will walk straight right back into the playing XI for the first match of the three-game series. The captain and vice-captain missed the previous ODI series against South Africa and the duo are expected to set the stage on fire against a depleted New Zealand playing XI.

Jan 11, 2026 11:15:14 AM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Dhruv Jurel drafted into the squad

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Rishabh Pant has been ruled out of the three-match series against New Zealand due to a side strain. This has led to the BCCI drafting Dhruv Jurel into the squad. However, he's unlikely to feature in the playing XI as KL Rahul is expected to start as the first-choice wicketkeeper.

Jan 11, 2026 11:00:17 AM IST

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Hello and welcome!

India vs New Zealand 1st ODI, IND vs NZ Live: Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the first ODI of the three-match series between India and New Zealand. The toss scheduled for 1 PM with play to begin at 1:30 PM IST. Stay tuned here for all the crucial updates!