(Middle Order)
Virat Kohli (India) (captain)
For Virat Kohli’s standards, this series can be termed as one of his dismal performances in recent times. He got out twice in the forties in the first two ODIs which is a rarity. But, he did well in the third game of the series with a match-winning 60. It was surprising to see him not convert even a single start into a century something he does with unbelievable consistency otherwise.
Kohli was spot on with his leadership and the team won all the three games under him. Hence, despite playing only the initial three games he will also lead this combined XI. Virat scored 148 runs in three innings at an average of just over 49.
Ambati Rayudu (India)
Amabti Rayudu did not have an excellent series against Australia and there were questions that were raised against about the number four spot. Dhoni was tried at this position for one of the matches and speculation was rife. But, the team management held enough trust in him and gave the right-hander chances in all the five ODIs against New Zealand.
Rayudu got good scores in the first three games but couldn’t make it big. he was dismissed without scoring in the fourth ODI where all the Indian batsmen failed. He came to his own in the last game under immense pressure. He scored 90 runs in the game and finished as the leading run-scorer in the series. He amassed as many as 190 runs in 5 innings at an average over 63.
Ross Taylor (New Zealand)
Ross Taylor has had a dream run in ODI since the end of World Cup 2015. He has been scoring runs everywhere against all sorts of oppositions. But, he failed to maintain the same consistency in this series against India. The strength in the Indian bowling attack once again managed to surpass a certain performer in the opposition.
Taylor amassed 93 and 37 runs in just two innings which aggregates to 130. In the remaining three innings, he only managed to get 47 runs which was slightly disappointing by his standards. Yet, he was amongst the best performers with the bat in the series and finished third on the list with 177 runs at 44.25.
