Published 15:59 IST, January 24th 2020
Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul power India to a comfortable 6-wicket win in the 1st T20
Shreyas Iyer once again proved why he is the perfect person to play in the middle for the Men in Blue as India picked up a comfortable 6-wicket win at Auckland
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Shreyas Iyer once again proved why he is the perfect person to play in the middle for the Men in Blue as India picked up a comfortable six-wicket win over New Zealand in the 1st T20 in Auckland. Chasing a target of 204 runs, India's run-chase was spearheaded initially by opener KL Rahul and skipper Virat Kohli followed by Shreyas Iyer and Manish Pandey - who ensured India went across the line. A cool, calm and composed Shreyas Iyer played a quick-fire knock of 58 runs off just 29 deliveries, laced with five fours and three sixes. Along with Manish Pandey, Shreyas Iyer finished off the game in style with a gigantic six, putting India 1-0 up on the scoreboard.
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Rahul, Shreyas get the job done for India
After losing Rohit Sharma early in the run-chase, KL Rahul and skipper Virat Kohli took over the reins of the chase and guided the team to a commendable score at the end of the powerplay. Surviving few run-out scares and drops, KL Rahul and Virat Kohli managed to get India to a commanding position from which Shreyas Iyer, Shivam Dube and Manish Pandey could take over. KL Rahul departed after a sensational fifty while Virat Kohli anchored the run-chase and fell short of his fifty by six runs. Shivam Dube played a cameo, coming in at number four, while Manish Pandey stood firm on the other end as Shreyas Iyer decimated the Kiwi bowlers.
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Jasprit Bumrah suffers another injury?
Jasprit Bumrah just came back from injury in the T20I series against Sri Lanka but India's worries may not be over for just yet when it comes to their lead pacer's fitness. In a match where runs flowed easily for New Zealand, Bumrah was the only bowler who could really hold his own in front of Kane Williamson and his men. Jasprit Bumrah ended the match with figures of 1-31 in his four overs and turned out to be India's most economical bowler. However, in the last over of the NZ innings, Bumrah landed awkwardly on his left leg and seemed to injure his ankle. After some treatment, Bumrah did bowl the remaining over and gave away only 6 runs in the 4 balls after that. However, fans are worried about losing Bumrah to injury again and have taken to Twitter to share their best wishes for the bowler.
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15:59 IST, January 24th 2020