A 63-run partnership off 28 deliveries between Dinesh Karthik and Krunal Pandya was just not enough to guide India to victory as New Zealand won the final T20I of the three-match series by four runs. After winning the toss, Rohit Sharma invited the Kiwis to bat first and they posted 212/4 on the board in their respective 20 overs.
In response, India fell short by four runs from chasing down the target. A lot was expected from the opening pair of Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma with a mammoth target to chase. However, India got off to a bad start as Dhawan was dismissed in the first over of the Indian inning. Vijay Shankar played a healthy knock of 43 runs off 28 deliveries, before he was dismissed by Mitchell Santner. Wickets kept tumbling at regular intervals, but India were still in the contest till the final over. With 16 required in the final over, the Indian duo of Karthik and Krunal only managed 12 runs, handing New Zealand a 2-1 series win.
The cricket fraternity hailed both the teams for putting up a spirited contest. Here are the tweets:
If 6-7 batsmen don’t do it, 8 won’t either. This theory got further validation. Quite incredible that India bowled only 5 bowlers in three consecutive T20i. Conceded 200+ in two of those. #NZvInd
— Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) 10 February 2019
Love DK’s rare gift of being able to hit big shots crisply from the middle of the bat from ball no 1. One of the most dangerous batsman today with 3/4 overs to go. ????????#INDvsNZt20
— Sanjay Manjrekar (@sanjaymanjrekar) 10 February 2019
Congratulations to New Zealand on winning the series 2-1 #NZvIND pic.twitter.com/x829ObFkBN
— BCCI (@BCCI) 10 February 2019
New Zealand take the series 2-1!
The Blackcaps hold off India despite a late charge from Krunal Pandya and Dinesh Karthik to win by four runs in Hamilton.#NZvIND scorecard ?? https://t.co/Prav9ucvl2 pic.twitter.com/Udx6Y6MNIE
— ICC (@ICC) 10 February 2019
Too many wickets. This run-chase is coming apart spectacularly after the halfway point.
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) 10 February 2019
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Tim Seifert was picked as Man Of The Series for his contribution with the bat. The Kiwi opener who amassed 96 runs in two innings was the highest run-scorer of the series. Speaking during the post-match ceremony, Seifert said, “Great to have a performance like that, but it’s great to get a victory, particularly a last-minute one like that. Great to have batted with Colin Munro. It’s awesome in my hometown, that the crowd have come out in full support – hopefully they do so for the Super Smash final as well.”
