India beat New Zealand by 5 wickets in the first T20I of three-match series in Jaipur. Chasing the target of 165 runs, India got off to a good start with the Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul adding 50 runs for the first wicket.
After Rahul got out, Rohit was joined by Suryakumar Yadav who batted brilliantly for his 62-run knock. Suryakumar was also the ‘Player of the match’ for his sensational batting show against the Kiwis.
In the last five over, New Zealand bowlers made a good comeback and bowled few dot balls that kept India away from the target till the last over.
“Towards the end we saw it wasn’t easy, was a great learning for the guys because those guys haven’t batted in that situation before for India. It was great learning for them to understand what needs to be done, it’s not about power hitting all the time and you try and put the ball to the left or right of the fielder and try and take singles or find boundaries. As a team we are happy that those guys got to bat in that situation and finished the game off. Technically was a good game, missing a few players and to come and see what the new players have in terms of ability and I think the way we pulled it back in the last 3-4 overs was magnificent. In the end it was a great effort from all our bowlers,” said skipper Rohit Sharma.
Earlier India restricted New Zealand to 164/6 in 20 overs where Ravichandran Ashwin was the stand out bowler with his figures of 2/23.
The two teams will next face off at the JSCA International Stadium in Ranchi on Friday.