NZ vs IND, 2nd ODI Review: Brar's Four Wickets Put India 2-0 Up in a Rain-Hit Thriller in Wellington

India went 2-0 up in the five-match ODI series with a four-run win over New Zealand on the DLS method at Sky Stadium in Wellington on Saturday, 7 November. Wet weather cut the match to 47 overs a side and left a bouncy, seaming pitch. India bowled New Zealand out for 134 in 41 overs. They were 113 for 7 after 26 overs of the chase when rain stopped play for good, four runs ahead of the DLS par score. Gurnoor Brar took 4 for 30, the best figures of his ODI career, and was named Player of the Match.

A hard pitch to bat on

Rain on the day before the match and again on the morning produced a surface with steep, uneven bounce and plenty of movement off the seam. Daryl Mitchell, the only batter to reach fifty, said afterwards that it was "like batting on a trampoline". With the lush outfield slowing the ball down, singles were hard to find, and batters on both sides had to wait for a loose ball and hit it hard.

New Zealand's top order falls early

India won the toss again and chose to bowl. New Zealand made no runs from the first ten balls, and Tim Seifert then chipped Auqib Nabi to Anshul Kamboj for a duck. Nabi also had Will Young caught by KL Rahul for 6, and Kamboj bowled Henry Nicholls, who played on for 11. New Zealand were 23 for 3 after nine overs.

Mitchell and Tom Latham tried to rebuild, but Brar struck twice in the 20th over. Bowling short from over the wicket, he had Latham caught by Naman Dhir trying to pull, and Glenn Phillips top-edged a ball that seamed back in, giving Kamboj another catch. New Zealand were 53 for 5.

Mitchell and Santner fight back

Mitchell Santner looked the most comfortable batter in the match. He made 31 off 38 balls with two sixes and added 59 with Mitchell for the sixth wicket. Mitchell found it harder to score against Axar Patel's spin and eventually charged him, holing out to Kamboj at long-off for 55 off 104 balls.

That started the collapse. Brar had Santner caught by Rahul and Nathan Smith caught by Rohit Sharma, Axar bowled Kyle Jamieson, and Kamboj bowled Blair Tickner. New Zealand lost their last five wickets for 22 runs. Tickner was hit by a bouncer from Kamboj and later ruled out with concussion, so Matthew Fisher came in as his replacement.

Nabi, Kamboj and Axar took two wickets each. Arshdeep Singh went wicketless but kept the pressure on, giving away just 16 runs in seven overs, including a maiden.

India's chase and the rain

India needed 135 in 47 overs. Shubman Gill was out first ball, caught by Nicholls off Jacob Duffy, and Duffy also removed Virat Kohli for 7 with a ball that held up on his cover drive. Rohit took on most of Jamieson's opening spell and scored 23 off 28 balls, 20 of them in boundaries, before Jamieson had him caught by Nicholls. Fisher had Axar caught by Duffy in his first over, and India were 47 for 4.

Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul added 39 for the fifth wicket. Iyer made 30 off 46 balls before Jamieson got him with a sharp bouncer, caught by Latham. Duffy then had Dhir caught by Seifert for 12. In the 26th over, Kamboj was caught by Duffy off Jamieson, and rain arrived straight after. With India 113 for 7 and Rahul unbeaten on 26, the umpires could not restart, and India won on DLS.

Jamieson and Duffy both took 3 for 35. Of India's 113 runs, 78 came in boundaries, which shows how hard it was to score any other way.

Fantasy corner: who scored the most points

Gurnoor Brar, 153 points. The top scorer on Fantasy11, with four wickets and a maiden in his 10 overs. Teams that made him captain got 306 points from him.
Jacob Duffy, 128 points. Three wickets, including Gill and Kohli, plus two catches.
Anshul Kamboj, 126 points. Two wickets and three catches, including the one that ended Mitchell's innings.
Kyle Jamieson, 126 points. Three wickets from a full 10-over spell.
Daryl Mitchell, 95 points. The best batter on the list, with the only fifty of the match.

For the second match in a row, fast bowlers led the points. The top four were all seamers, and the best batter came in fifth.

Up next

The 3rd ODI is at Seddon Park in Hamilton on Tuesday, 10 November, starting at 3:00 pm local time (7:30 am in India). New Zealand need a win to keep the series alive. Contests on Fantasy11 are free to enter, with no deposits. Build your team before the deadline and follow every ball live in the match centre.