Suryakumar’s Nelson*, helps India beat NZ in the opener T20i

Mount Maunganui: Suryakumar Yadav’s unbeaten 111 and Deepak Hooda’s four-fer sealed the second T20I match for India against New Zealand here at Bay Oval on Sunday.
Batting first India posted a huge 191/6 which turned out to be a daunting task for the hosts to get over the line as only four of their batsmen could reach double figures with their Captain Kane Williamson top scoring with 61 off 52 balls.
New Zealand were bowled out for 126 in 18.5 overs, losing to India by 65 runs.
India’s bowlers kept constant pressure with Hooda reeling off with four wickets, while the batsmen were under pressure chasing down the big target.
Right-arm wrist spinner Yuzvendra Chahal was the standout bowler for India who claimed two wickets and Bhuvaneshwar Kumar and Mohammad Siraj set the tone early on with the new ball.
It did seem like the New Zealand batsmen found it difficult to hit big shots and that’s what makes SKY’s century all the more special.
After Rishabh Pant (6) and Ishan Kishan (36 off 31) struggled and Shreyas Iyer (13 off 9) disturbed the timbers with his foot, SKY displayed his out-of-the-box batting skills.
All those maverick shots of his were thoroughly enjoyed and reveled by the spectators at the stadium. He exuded grandeur coupled with lunacy as he leaves not a single corner of the ground unpicked.
Yadav also did not spare the usually impressive Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi (1/35), as he feasted on them in death overs while they tried to fix him with slower stuff.
He brought up his second century of his T20 career in the penultimate over of India’s innings.
Yadav remained unbeaten on 111 from 51 balls, an innings consisting of 11 boundaries and 7 mighty sixes. His first century came against England earlier this year.
Yadav has amassed 1151 runs in T20Is in 2022, the most among all batsmen, at an astonishing average and strike rate of 47.95 and 188.37 respectively.
He was also one of India’s best batsmen during the T20 World Cup in Australia recently, where he scored 239 runs at an outstanding average of 59.75 and a mind-boggling strike rate of 189.68, which included fifties in crucial games against South Africa, Zimbabwe and Netherlands.
These feats also catapulted him to the top of the ICC T20I batting rankings.
New Zealand were happy to have kept India down below 200, thanks to that last over from Tim Southee took a hat-trick and conceded just 5 off it.
During the run chase, New Zealand needed Finn Allen (0) to fire, but he fell to Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the second ball of the innings.
Though Devon Conway (25) got a partnership of 56 runs with Williamson, neither of them were able to up the tempo, barring one Washington Sundar (1/24) over that fetched them 17 runs.
Part-time spinner Hooda ended New Zealand’s innings, after picking up three wickets in the penultimate over. He bowled an economical spell, registering figures of 4/10 in 2.5 overs.
With this win, India are 1-0 up against Kiwis in the three-match T20I series with the first one in Wellington was abandoned due to incessant rains. (by BD Naraayannkar-UNI)