Arshdeep Singh returned 3/30 to help India beat New Zealand in the fifth and final one-dayer and take the series 3-1 at Mount Maunganui on Sunday. However, it was his batting that caught more attention.
Coming in at No.11, Arshdeep scored 14 runs off four balls with the help of two sixes and featured in a 26-run stand with Mohammed Siraj (14 not out off 26 balls). Their 10th-wicket partnership proved to be decisive as the visitors won the match by 22 runs.
Speaking at the post-match presentation, where he picked up his Man-of-the-Match award, Arshdeep revealed his love for batting, and what Siraj told him after their important stand. “I love my batting. Even if I’m batting at 11, I enjoy it. And always trying to create room for myself and smash it. But some people on my team say that I’m scared of the ball,” the fast bowler, who recently joined Mumbai Indians from Punjab Kings in the IPL as part of a swap deal, said.
“Siraj told me that these runs will be very crucial. And we made sure we went above 200, and that was a little thought in mind: we had crossed a small milestone there and had some runs to bowl at,” he added.
{{/usCountry}}“Siraj told me that these runs will be very crucial. And we made sure we went above 200, and that was a little thought in mind: we had crossed a small milestone there and had some runs to bowl at,” he added.
{{/usCountry}}Earlier, after being put in to bat, India were bowled out for 209. With not much on the board to defend, the visiting bowlers were under pressure to deliver. A win for New Zealand on Sunday would have tied the five-game series at 2-2.
Having also in mind that the Indians had lost the previous game by 244 runs — their second biggest ODI defeat by runs — there was no option but to shine and alleviate the pain of that ignominious defeat earlier this week at the same venue.
The Blackcaps were looking good at 64/1 in the 17th over when Arshdeep removed Will Young and Nick Kelly in the blink of an eye to leave the hosts struggling at 82/3. The Kiwis couldn’t really recover after that and were eventually bowled out for 187 in the 49th over. Later, the left-arm pacer removed Kristian Clarke for 16 too.
Arshdeep, who during the ODI series got engaged to model-actor Samreen Kaur, said the Indian bowlers were not hasty and bided their time and were eventually rewarded.
“We kept coming, and we were very disciplined with our areas, and we didn’t let go of that thing, even when we were not getting the results, we were not getting the wickets. But we kept bowling [into those areas] and eventually got the results, and yes, we won.”