All these cricket fans scattered across the globe were eagerly checking the hot matches between two of the strongest international cricket teams in the world: India and New Zealand. Games played by these two teams promise a lot of actions, promises, and masterpieces from each person who appears at play, and sometimes some of them are so unforgettable.
In this article, we will analyze one of the last games between both teams, focusing on critical moments of performance and even the final scorecard.
Overview of the India vs New Zealand Encounter
The Indian National Cricket Team and New Zealand National Cricket Team faced off in a spine-chilling match on November 13, 2024, as part of the ICC Men’s ODI Series. It was a highly charged game played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, India.
This is a crucial match ahead of the ICC Men’s World Cup 2024, as both teams had to recover and get back in form before this mega event.
Match Format: One Day International (ODI)
It was a one-day international of 50 overs, one of the best; it requires patience, skill, and strategy. During ODIs, there is a clause that allows every team to bowl a maximum of 50 overs. The team that scores more runs in the overall innings wins the match.
Toss and Match Summary
- Toss Winner: New Zealand
- Match Outcome: India wins by 45 runs
- Match Venue: Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad
New Zealand won the toss and elected to field, hoping that they would be chasing on a good wicket. Little did New Zealand know that the Indians had their plans as well, and they designed a challenge for the visiting team.
India’s Innings: A Strong Start and Middle Order Consolidation
India managed to build a great all-around score of 290/7 in 50 overs. Even losing some wickets up front, middle-order batsmen saw India reach a competitive total.
- Top Indian Scorer: Shubman Gill scores 94 runs off 102 deliveries
- Important Takeaways: Rohit Sharma-56 off 65 balls, Virat Kohli-44 off 52 balls
Indian batting revolved around the bat of Shubman Gill, who batted till the end by playing a knock of substantial worth. His timing and placement were accurate as he hit as many as 11 boundaries. A cracking start by Rohit Sharma, supported by a solid Virat Kohli innings, gave the base to the Indian team.
Top Scorers:
- Shubman Gill: 94 (102 balls, 11 fours, 1 six)
- Rohit Sharma: 56 runs (65 balls, 7 fours)
- Virat Kohli: 44 runs (52 balls, 5 fours)
New Zealand’s Bowling Performance: Key Moments
New Zealand’s bowling team was impressive, with experienced shoulders in the form of Lockie Ferguson and Trent Boult, but it could not restrict India’s batsmen well.
- Best New Zealand Bowler: Trent Boult (3/56 in 10 overs)
- Lockie Ferguson (2/45 off 10), Mitchell Santner (1/36 off 10)
And then Boult, not quite so far behind the runs, though it was not relatively fresh enough as a wicket-taking act, with his second reverse swing in the over earning a decisive glove down the leg-side for a caught-and-bowled chance. Ferguson and Santner did some jobs for the tourists, but overall it wasn’t good enough to counter what the Indians put out for New Zealand to attempt to chase.
New Zealand’s Chase: A Brave but Unsuccessful Effort
New Zealand needed to chase 291 runs. They got off very brashly but started to lose too many wickets over the days. This mounted the pressure as the run rate increased.
- Highest New Zealand Scorer: Devon Conway (68 off 75 balls)
- Contribution: Kane Williamson (32 off 45 balls) and Glenn Phillips (40 off 39 balls)
Devon Conway batted through to the very end, but after that, the middle order of New Zealand simply couldn’t hold out against the pressure. A few blows to the main wickets, like Kane Williamson and Glenn Phillips, dented their chase considerably.
India’s Bowling Attack: Dominant Performance
Bumrah and Siraj bailed India out wonderfully by bowling yorkers from Bumrah and swingers from Siraj. They proved menacing all through the innings for New Zealand’s batsmen.
- Best Indian Bowler: Jasprit Bumrah
- Mohammed Siraj: 10-0-4-2; 10-0-3-2;
- Ravindra Jadeja: 9-0-3-1
That spell was by change-maker Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, where middle overs crucial wickets were due to a tight line and length. What mattered is support by Siraj as well, who picked early wickets, while Jadeja’s economy kept that pressure on.
Key Moments of the Match
- Shubman Gill’s Batting Masterclass: Gill’s 94 set up India’s substantial total in his presence.
- Trent Boult’s Late Fightback: 3 wickets. That’s imperative, but it’s not sufficient for Boult.
- Jasprit Bumrah’s Death Bowling: When Bumrah is short of yorkers, that is pretty much a set amount of denying New Zealand any hope.
Final Scorecard
India Innings:
- Rohit Sharma: 56 off 65 balls
- Shubman Gill: 94 off 102 balls
- Virat Kohli: 44 off 52 balls
- Hardik Pandya: 18 off 25 balls
- Rishabh Pant: 22 off 17 balls
- Shreyas Iyer: 12 off 11 balls
- Ravindra Jadeja: 15 runs (11 balls)
- Extras: 19
- Total: 290/7 in 50 overs
New Zealand Innings:
- Devon Conway: 68 runs (75 balls)
- Kane Williamson: 32 runs (45 balls)
- Glenn Phillips: 40 runs (39 balls)
- Tom Latham: 10 runs (15 balls)
- Daryl Mitchell: 15 runs (23 balls)
- James Neesham: 7 runs (8 balls)
- Extras: 8
- Total: 180/7 in 45 overs (Match reduced to 45 overs per side due to rain)
Conclusion
India, at 45 run lead both batting and bowling, kept them in a great position. Well, that is a good knock by Shubman Gill with 94 runs, and then some fabulous death bowling by Jasprit Bumrah made this a thriller match, but New Zealand does show that it is not all that easy to chase down something of this nature as they couldn’t gain enough to cross the sets imposed by India. New Zealand ended with the Indian team on top by 45 runs.