New Zealand came up with a fine bowling performance in the fourth ODI at Ranchi to stay alive in the series. With the series locked at 2-2, it’s all to play for in the fifth ODI at Visakhapatnam on Sunday.
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GUPTILL SHINES AT LAST
A lot has been said about the New Zealand batsmen not taking enough responsibility in this series. Martin Guptill is one such player who has come under criticism; his form had been disappointing as a lot had been expected from him in the ODI series.
Guptill has turned himself into one of the finest ODI openers over the years which had made his slump in form in the ongoing series even more disappointing. Wednesday was different, however, as Guptill was the top-scorer among the Kiwi batsmen with a splendid 72 off 84 balls.
It was not quite the quintessential Guptill knock, but that was understandable as he was trying to work his way into some form. We did see glimpses of his usual self in the lofted drives over the extra-cover region.
However, he will be disappointed to have been dismissed caught behind off Hardik Pandya’s bowling, just when he looked set for a big one.
That's a half-century to @Martyguptill! The 31st time in ODIs he's reached the milestone (along with 10 centuries) #indvnz ^CE pic.twitter.com/DPPV1eSVfy
— BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) October 26, 2016
DHONI’S UNBELIEVABLE RUN-OUT
Wicket-keeping, like umpiring, is a thankless job where the general consensus is that you have done a good job in a match if you manage to go unnoticed. MS Dhoni, known for his unorthodox batsmanship, is just as unconventional and effective behind the stumps.
Time and again, in this series, we have been witness to Dhoni’s lightning fast hands and brilliant glovework behind the stumps. On his home ground, the Indian captain was brilliant once more in affecting the run-out of Ross Taylor.
Taylor, who looked set, had heaved away the ball to the leg-side in the 46th over and tried to take a couple of runs. The throw that came in from Dhawal Kulkarni on the bounce would have taken time to reach Dhoni if he had been behind the stumps.
Dhoni instead chose to take it early, a few feet away from the stumps, and flicked it back on to the stumps behind his back without even looking. The entire process was brilliant and Taylor’s crucial wicket made quite a difference to the total in the end.
Watch the Mahi magic on loop #INDvNZ https://t.co/btMoJF0xC3
— BCCI (@BCCI) October 26, 2016
NEW ZEALAND’S BATTING BELOW PAR AT THE END
One of the main problems that the New Zealand team have struggled to address in the series so far is the issues with their batting. Most of the top-order batsmen failing repeatedly or the team losing their way after a good start has been an all too familiar story.
It was slightly different at Ranchi with all the top four Kiwi batsmen getting off to good starts though none of them except Guptill crossed the half-century mark. The consequence was disastrous as they once again threw away the advantage and finished about 50 runs short of what they were aiming for at one stage.
When Guptill departed in the 26th over, the Kiwis were 138 for 2. Williamson departed with the score at 184 in the 36th over. By then, India had started to squeeze the opposition already, but a score close to 300 still looked possible.
The Blackcaps then lost Jimmy Neesham, BJ Watling and Ross Taylor in the space of the next 40 runs and were never able to put their foot down on the accelerator. The Indian bowlers deserve some credit for their performance in the death overs at Ranchi.
INDIAN MIDDLE-ORDER FAILS
The ODI series has been strange in the sense that the Indian batsmen have been too inconsistent.
At Ranchi, the Indian top-order failed to convert their starts and after the dismissal of Ajinkya Rahane, Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni, it was a good opportunity for the Indian youngsters to take the team home.
India will be expecting more from the likes of Manish Pandey
India have given opportunities to a lot of fresh faces in the series, perhaps trying to groom them for the next World Cup. Although there is no shortage of talent in most of them, their ability to perform in pressure situations was the big question mark.
The way the Indian lower middle-order fell away at Ranchi would have been extremely disappointing for the team management. Manish Pandey and Hardik Pandya threw away their wickets going for expansive lofted shots when partnerships were required.
Only Axar Patel played a good hand before he got out to a great yorker from Trent Boult. The question going forward would be if the Indian youngsters can be trusted to finish off matches every time the experienced top-order fails.
At Ranchi, they did press the panic button and self-destruct en route a modest chase.
NEW ZEALAND BOWLERS COME GOOD
What New Zealand have lacked with the bat in the series, they have certainly made up for with the ball. Against a strong batting line-up, they hung in there while defending a modest total.
Tim Southee was brilliant as he accounted for three of the most important Indian batsmen. He produced a beautiful delivery early on to get rid of Rohit Sharma and later came back to dismiss Manish Pandey and Kedar Jadhav to put the nails in the Indian coffin.
Jimmy Neesham was exceptional with his medium pace and dismissed a well-set Ajinkya Rahane and then went through Dhoni’s defence to spark off India’s middle-order collapse.
Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi bowled economical spells to keep up the pressure as well.
With the series locked at 2-2, it is now all to play for in the fifth ODI.
