On Friday, after registering a win in the Auckland T20I, the Indian skipper Rohit Sharma revealed that the team learned from their mistakes from the 1st T20I in Wellington, and executed their plans better in the 2nd match. After losing by 80 runs on Wednesday, the men in blue made a comeback to pull off an easy 7-wicket win at Eden Park on Friday with 9 balls to spare.
Talking about the win during the post-match presentation ceremony, Sharma said: “Very pleased to see how we bowled, and we were quite clinical with the bat as well. We have quality in our side, but we executed our plans better today, after learning from our mistakes.”
New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson had earlier won the toss and decided to bat first. With Colin de Grandhomme firing a quick half-century, the Kiwis reached 158/8 in 20 overs. With Rohit and Dhawan giving India a good start, the Indian team chased down the target with still 7 wickets in hand and 7 balls remaining. Sharma became the leading run scorer in T20Is after slamming 50 runs in 29 balls in the 2nd T20I, further added that he is eagerly awaiting the final T20I which will take place on Sunday. He also smashed his 100th T20I six in Auckland
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Describing the same, the Indian skipper said, “It’s important to understand the mistakes that we made – it’s been a long tour for everyone. So we didn’t want to put a lot of pressure on the boys, just go in there with a clear mind. It’s going to be a cracker of a game in the 3rd T20I, but nothing to take away from New Zealand, they’re still a quality side.”
For his match-winning spell of 3/28 in the first innings, the Indian all-rounder, Krunal Pandya was adjudged as man of the match.
Taing about his preparations for the game, Pandya said, “It felt really nice to contribute and it’s always special when the team wins. You have to adapt according to the ground, and I think I did that well.”
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Williamson analyzed the defeat during the post-match presentation and said that his side was at least 20 runs short. He also expressed that there is always room for improvement while playing against a champion team like India.
The Kiwi skipper explained, “I suppose the performance in Wellington was going to be difficult to replicate. It was slightly more tricky to bat, but 20 more runs at the death would have been better. It wasn’t a 180-200 wicket for sure, but the opening partnership from India just took it away. It’s important that as a side we are aware of the good bits we have done and put that into practice every time we come out to bat. Today wasn’t as close as we would have liked, but having a full house like Eden Park, there isn’t any better atmosphere in the world.”
