India and New Zealand kick off a five-T20I series at Christchurch on Thursday. This is the fifth time that the Indians are travelling to the Antipodean nation for a T20I bilateral series. There have been 12 games in New Zealand between these two teams since 2009, and India have won five of them and lost four. However, it may be noted that three matches have also ended in a tie, and two of them went India’s way in the Super Over. Here’s a look at how India have fared in New Zealand in the shortest format over the years.
2009 – Ind 0-2 NZ
India lost both their T20I matches against the Blackcaps. In the first game at Christchurch, New Zealand put MS Dhoni’s men into bat. Batting at No. 3, Suresh Raina scored 61 not out off 43 balls as the visitors posted 162/8. The Kiwis, although they lost Jesse Ryder early on, cantered to the target with seven balls to spare and seven wickets in hand. Brendon McCullum scored 56 not out off 49 balls to guide his team to victory.
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In the second game at Wellington, Yuvraj Singh scored a 30-ball 50 but India could only post 149/6. The hosts won the game off the last ball with McCullum again taking the lead with 69 not out off 55 balls. The Kiwis took the match by five wickets.
2019 – Ind 1-2 NZ
It took almost 10 years for the next bilateral T20I series between these two teams to take place. It was a three-game series, and the Kiwis bagged it 2-1. In the first game at Wellington, Tim Seifert scored a 43-ball 84 as the hosts posted 219/6. Rohit Sharma captained the Indians in the absence of the rested Virat Kohli, and the team was bowled out for just 139 to suffer a huge 80-run loss.
India made it 1-1 in the second game after New Zealand scored 158/8 thanks to No. 6 Colin de Grandhomme’s 50 off 28 balls. India comfortably chased down the target with seven balls to go and seven wickets in hand. Rohit (50 off 29 balls) and Rishabh Pant (40 not out off 28 balls) made the chase easy for the visitors.
In the final game, which was a thriller, India fell just four runs short of New Zealand’s 212/4, fuelled by Colin Munro’s 72 off 40 balls. After being reduced to 145/6 in 15.2 overs at Hamilton, Dinesh Karthik (33 not out off 16 balls) and Krunal Pandya (26 not out off 13 balls) batted bravely and added 63 off 28 balls, but despite their extraordinary efforts, the team couldn’t win and lost the series.
2020 – Ind 5-0 NZ
This time, there wasn’t a long delay, and India reached New Zealand in just less than a year for five T20Is. India won all five games (including two Super Over wins) in a strong show. In the first game at Auckland, they chased down 204 with six balls to spare and six wickets in hand, thanks to fifties from KL Rahul (56 off 27 balls) and Shreyas Iyer (58 not out off 29 balls). In the second game at the same venue, New Zealand posted a modest 132/5 after which Rahul scored 57 not out off 50 balls to guide the Indian team to a seven-wicket win with 15 balls to go.
The third game at Hamilton ended in a tie after both teams scored 179. In the ensuing Super Over, the Kiwis scored 17 runs. With India needing 10 off the last two balls, Rohit Sharma hit back-to-back sixes off Tim Southee to seal the series for India.
Another tied game came to pass in Wellington after both teams scored 165. New Zealand scored 13 off the Jasprit Bumrah Super Over, after which KL Rahul got 10 runs off the first two balls. After he departed off the third ball, captain Virat Kohli picked up two and a four off the next two to take India to another Super Over win.
In the final game of the series at Mount Maunganui, India successfully defended their 163/3, fuelled by Rohit’s 60 off 41 balls. Bumrah then led from the front, and his figures 3/12 meant the Kiwis fell short of the target by seven runs to concede the series 5-0.
2022 – Ind 1-0 NZ
After the first match was abandoned due to rain without a ball being bowled at Wellington, India won comfortably in the next at Mount Maunganui. Suryakumar Yadav scored 111 not out off 51 balls to guide the team to 191/6. The host crashed to 126 all out with spin allrounder Deepak Hooda taking four wickets. In the third game at Napier, chasing 161 to win, the Indians were 75/4 in 9 overs when rain came down to put an end to the game. As per the DLS, the game was declared a tie, and India won the series 1-0.
