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Kohli, Shami lead India to fifth straight victory
The pacer grabbed five wickets while Kohli fell for a brilliant 95, missing a record-equalling 49th ODI ton, as the hosts beat New Zealand by 4 wickets
It didn’t matter that India’s in-form openers fell within the space of 13 balls in a challenging run chase. It didn’t matter that he was involved in a mix-up with Suryakumar Yadav when India still needed 83 runs for victory with five wickets in hand. It didn’t matter that fog caused an unexpected interruption just when he was a few deliveries into his innings.
It didn’t matter because Virat Kohli is a one-day colossus, racking up match-winning runs with a steely glint in his eye and stunning grace in his strokes. Kohli’s masterclass (95 off 104 balls) against New Zealand at the HPCA Stadium on Sunday helped India chase down 274 with four wickets in hand and two overs to spare.
It means India occupy the top spot in the points table with five wins in as many matches. Mohammed Shami also played his part with a five-wicket haul as Daryl Mitchell’s century for New Zealand went in vain.
That Kohli was out for 95 rather than unbeaten at the end was only down to an attempt to get to his 49th ODI century – it would equal him with Sachin Tendulkar – with a six. With five needed off 16 balls, Kohli even turned down a single to deep square leg. He had perhaps earned that luxury after a superb knock in difficult circumstances.
The game seemed to be on a knife’s edge when India lost their fifth wicket with 191 runs on the board in 33.5 overs. Kohli may have found himself at fault for it, for he was a bit guilty of ball watching even though Mitchell Santner played his part in Suryakumar’s run out with a brilliant stop and quick throw from extra cover.
While others may have harped on it for too long, Kohli reigns supreme in these situations. He stitched together an important 78-run partnership with Ravindra Jadeja to take India to the cusp of a thrilling win.
It was an innings of supreme quality from Kohli. Off the mark with a breathtaking square drive against pacer Lockie Ferguson, Kohli controlled the tempo from start to finish. He came in after an opening partnership of 71 between Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill. Sharma was expectedly fluent, stroking three fours and a six in the first three overs to settle the nerves in India’s dressing room. There was the odd ball that misbehaved, but Sharma as well as Gill had full conviction in their execution. When Henry beat Sharma’s outside edge in the second over for instance, Sharma skipped down the pitch to deposit the next ball over the long-on boundary.
With the ball not swinging much under lights, Trent Boult – usually so dangerous from over the wicket to right-handers – decided to switch his angle of attack. It didn’t dissuade Sharma from displaying his exquisite timing against the left-arm pacer. Drives off Gill’s bat were just as majestic. Just as India seemed set to cruise in yet another run chase though, Ferguson struck. It wasn’t a great delivery, full and wide, but Sharma’s half-hearted drive meant he played onto the stumps.
Gill and Iyer too didn’t capitalise on their starts. Gill fell to Ferguson while attempting to play an upper cut. Iyer, not for the first time, perished after miscuing a pull to deep square leg.
At 128/3, Kohli and KL Rahul – the pair that steered India out of trouble versus the Aussies – came together. Another solid partnership was forged, Kohli leading the way with good sense and great timing. Rahul, revitalised after his injury layoff, was looking equally solid – he was away with a punch through point for four against Ferguson’s extra pace.
But off the first ball of the 33rd over, there was another twist in the tale when Rahul stepped out of his crease against Santner’s left-arm spin to defend. The bat came down to make contact with the ball at about the same time that it hit his front pad, resulting in the umpire’s not out verdict for a leg-before appeal. But New Zealand were right to review the decision and the India No. 5 had to depart. More drama unfolded with Suryakumar’s run-out.
The balance swung to-and-fro during New Zealand’s innings too. India’s execution with the new ball was precise. So relentless were Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj in bombarding that good length that only three boundaries came in the first eight overs, two of which were streaky through the third man region.
The early pressure told on Devon Conway. Not having had a scoring opportunity off his first eight balls, the left-hand opener’s eyes lit up on seeing a delivery on leg stump. He flicked aerially in the search for a boundary, but Iyer clung onto an excellent catch at square leg. After eight overs, Sharma turned to Shami – he didn’t play the first four games -- for the first time in the day, and the pacer immediately removed Will Young.
At 34/2 in 10 overs, New Zealand clearly needed a move on. Mitchell’s entry immediately signalled a more proactive approach. While his first boundary – he shuffled across and got a thick inside edge through a vacant fine leg against Siraj – was a tad fortuitous, his next was an emphatic thump over mid-on against Shami. He continued to either walk down the track or move across his stumps against the seamers.
The real shift in New Zealand’s approach though occurred in the 19th over, Kuldeep Yadav’s second. Having sussed the conditions, Ravindra took the initiative with a six that dissected long-off and long-on. Mitchell followed suit three balls later, carving the ball over wide long-on for the second six of a 16-run over. The left-arm wrist spinner had given away 23 runs in his first two overs, and he was under the cosh for the first time in this tournament.
Jadeja was economical – he finished with 10-0-48-0 -- but didn’t pose any threat to the New Zealand pair. They milked him for singles with ease while finding the odd boundary to maintain a healthy run rate. Once Mitchell reached fifty, he lofted Jadeja down the ground for another six.
His game plan against the spinners was very effective. He used his feet, mostly played in the arc from long-off to long-on and invariably targeted a boundary early in an over. As the partnership swelled, so did the desperation of the Indians for a breakthrough. Fielding lapses also crept in. Mitchell was dropped twice, by Rahul on 59 off Jadeja and by Bumrah on 69 off Kuldeep.
It was Shami who eventually broke the partnership by getting Ravindra caught at long on. While Mitchell went on to score a well-compiled century, they didn’t quite capitalise on the excellent partnership. Their last seven wickets fell for just 95 runs as India, inspired by Shami’s five-wicket haul, clawed their way back into a pulsating contest.
