On Tuesday, January 24, Team India trounced New Zealand by a large margin of 90 runs at the Holkar Cricket Stadium in Indore, completing a 3-0 whitewash for the third time in a row. With the Holkar Cricket Stadium victory, India has surpassed England to become the ICC ODI rankings’ new No. 1 team.
Earlier in the day, India openers Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill went all guns blazing from the start, scoring 212 runs before the captain was removed. Rohit and Gill’s 212-run stand is also the greatest by an opening duo against New Zealand in ODIs.
Rohit scored 101 runs in 85 balls, his second-fastest ODI century, while Gill scored 112 runs in 78 deliveries. At the age of 23, Gill’s century also equalled Pakistan’s Babar Azam’s World Record of scoring the most runs (360 runs) in a three-match ODI series. Hardik Pandya also joined the party, scoring a stunning half-century to help the Men in Blue post a huge total of 385/9 in their 50 overs.
Unfortunately for the visitors, their two centurions were the only bright point in the whole ODI series. If Michael Bracewell was the lone warrior for the Black Caps in the second ODI, Devon Conway was the lone warrior in the third ODI, smashing a magnificent century (138 off 100 deliveries), though his efforts were completely in vain because none of his teammates were able to hang in there and the Indian bowlers were simply too good for them to handle.
Shardul Thakur and Kuldeep Yadav dominate New Zealand batsmen
The Indian bowlers were just outstanding in the third ODI, targeting the Kiwi hitters from the first over. Shardul Thakur ended with a 6-0-45-3 record, while Kuldeep Yadav had a 9-0-62-3 record. Yuzvendra Chahal, his spin twin, also contributed with economical bowling, taking two key wickets and leaving the Kiwi batsmen perplexed.
Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill’s opening partnership proves successful
In the one-day international series against Sri Lanka, Rohit Sharma’s choice to choose Shubman Gill over Ishan Kishan for the opener’s spot generated quite a stir. Shubman Gill, on the other hand, has managed to silence everyone with his extraordinary consistency in the ODI series earlier this year against Sri Lanka and again against New Zealand, and has already entered the record books.
Also, even though the World Cup is still months away, India may have identified a quality opening duo in Rohit and Gill. The duo’s double-century partnership in the third ODI cost the Black Caps half the match.
Now, let’s take a look at the post-match comments from the two captains –
Losing Captain – Tom Latham (New Zealand)
I think the start with the ball wasn’t great. Fantastic partnership, but we pulled it back to 380. We were in a great position in the chase, but we lost too many wickets. This is our last experience before the World Cup, so we have got an idea. We wanted to build depth and it’s been a great experience for everyone. The more you are in these situations, the more you learn.
Winning Captain – Rohit Sharma (India)
I thought in the last six games we played we did most part rights and that is the key in 50-over games. We were consistent too. Without Siraj and Shami I knew we wanted to give chances to people on the bench. Wanted to get Chahal and Umran in the mix. We wanted to see how they react under pressure.
I don’t think any score is safe here. Shardul has been doing it for a while. People call him magician in the squad. Just need to get more games under his belt. The wrist spinners get better with game time. Gill’s approach is quite similar.
As a youngster, coming into the team and have that attitude is great. I’ve been batting well, so it was just about going that extra mile. The pitch was good today. Honestly, we don’t talk much about rankings. We discuss mainly about doing the right things on the field. Australia is a quality team and things won’t be easy for us but I think we are ready for the (BGT) series.
