India vs New Zealand highlights, 2nd T20: IND beat NZ by 7 wickets and take 2-0 lead in Raipur

(is this the way India are going to play?) I don’t know what Ishan had for lunch in the afternoon or what pre-workout he had before the game, but I’ve never seen anyone bat at 6 for 2 in that manner and still end the powerplay around 67 or 70. I thought it was incredible. Chasing 200 or 210, this is what we want from batters - to go out there, express themselves, be happy in their own space. And that’s exactly what he did today. (had the best seat in the house) I was angry he didn’t give me strike in the powerplay, but that’s okay. I had some time, played eight or ten balls, and I knew that later on, when I had time, I could cover it up. (biggest plus - his own form) Absolutely. As I’ve said before, I was batting really well in the nets. Everything I did back home over the last two or three weeks helped. I got a good break to spend time with my family and friends, had good practice sessions, and I’m really enjoying what’s happening right now. (restricting them to 208 with dew around) Yeah, I think it was an incredible effort. When they were around 100 or 110 for 2, we thought it would be a 225 or 230 total, like what happened in Nagpur. But the way Kuldeep, Varun, and that one over from Dube bowled - I think all the bowlers chipped in and took responsibility at that stage. Restricting them to 208, was an incredible effort from the bowling unit. (Starting to intimidate opponents. Everyone’s thinking, “How do we stop India?”) I’m really enjoying what’s happening right now. The mood in the camp is very happy, and I want to keep everyone in that space. We want to continue playing the same brand of cricket, irrespective of what’s happening, and leave no stone unturned.

Amazing batting by Ishan and Surya. I thought Ishan played a different knock - what a team always requires from the top six. And yes, last game it was Abhishek, and this game it was Ishan and Surya both. (what was said when India lost 2 early wickets) Nothing much. I just told the physio to mobilize my back, and everyone was chilled inside because we know how the wicket behaves. Yes, we were two wickets down - it’s cricket - but every player in the team has the ability to finish the game. (flexibility in the batting order) It just depends on what the situation is. Probably it was the left-right combination because Ishan and Surya were batting, and next Hardik and I were there. So it just depends on what is required in that situation. (was it a good wicket) Yeah, definitely we chased really nicely. You can’t say what is a good total on this wicket. If you have a good bowling side or take early wickets, then it’s different. But I think if you lose two wickets, you have to bowl really well in the powerplay. So it depends on how it’s going to come. (on his bowling effort) Yes, trying to contribute with my bowling for the team - that is very important. One over, two overs - it’s important for me and for the team as well.

Suryakumar Yadav seems to be batting this like a net. He is lofting every delivery or experimenting with a shot. The Indian sides have absolutely made a mockery of this chase. It was Ishan Kishan who started the onslaught, but Suryakumar Yadav took it from where Ishan Kishan left. Shivam Dube, who walked in when the side was in a good position, is playing a brilliant cameo out in the middle. Anything in his arc, he is pummeling into the stands. It will make a real intresting post match interviews from both teams on how they view this game.

Shivam Dube has come into the middle. It is a good opportunity for him to play himself into the innings and take his time altough this team does not play that way. Runs under the belt and time in the middle ahead of the World Cup is going to harm no one, isn't it? As we update Suryakumar Yadav, after 23 innings has a half-century. A very welcome innings from him. He did look in good form right from the ball one and eventually got to his landmark. He will be hoping to close out this chase from here on.

The innings from Ishan is what New Zealand lacked in the first innings. While they tried to keep up the scoring rate, the lack of a set batter did cost them at the end when Santner and Chapman, for a passage of a few overs, had to resurrect the innings. But in this case, India has a set batter who is slamming the ball all over and striking at 250. The run-rate has now come under control, and all the New Zealand bowlers have felt the wrath of Ishan's bat. It will be a test of captaincy for Santner on how he is going to turn this innings around from this point.

It was a poor over from the New Zealand perspective, but exactly what the doctor ordered from the Indians. Foulkes did come into the attack and slipped in a no-ball by hitting the stumps and then followed it up with two wides and later never recovered from it altough changed the angle. He ended up bowling in the arc of Ishan Kishan, who feasted on it nicely. Just as they were getting some momentum seems like they have got the tactics wrong by bringing in Foulkes into the attack. It is an important innings for Ishan Kishan too; He has an opportunity to make his mark in the middle here.

New Zealand (Playing XI): Devon Conway, Tim Seifert(w), Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, Mitchell Santner(c), Zakary Foulkes, Matt Henry, Ish Sodhi, Jacob Duffy

India (Playing XI): Sanju Samson(w), Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy

It has been a gem of an innings from Mitchell Santner here. He came in when the innings were losing a bit of steam, and he started to play well. He did not play high-risk shots and yet kept the strike rate through the innings. It is going to be Arshdeep Singh who is going to bowl the final over of the innings.

Arshdeep Singh has come back into the attack. His bowling has not been not upto the mark in his first burst, but he will be hoping to pull things back. He has a lethal yorker up his sleeve to beat the batters and also has a good slower bumper, which can act as a change-up from time to time. Also, it has been a more measured approach from the Kiwis in the last 15 minutes or so. Both Mitchell Santner and Mark Chapman have been reluctant to hit aerial shots. They have looked to play low percentage shots through the ground and run hard between the wickets.

Well, just as when it does seem like another partnership was brewing, Daryl Mitchell has fallen here. He tried to hit the ball on the leg-side and ended up giving a simple catch to the long-off fielder. It will be interesting to see how New Zealand will play when the actual World Cup starts. Yes, you want to maximise your potential as much as you can in batting, but under pressure, can you do the same? is the question, and the approach like this will always expose the team to a risk of all or nothing. Are we increasingly moving away from the adage that bowling wins you tournaments? We will find out.

The runs are flowing here. The partnership between Ravindra and Phillips is flowing quite quickly. The sixes are coming as easily as they can; it does seem like we might have another 220 playing 220 game on the cards. One thing which India has prided itself on in the recent tournaments has been the performances by the spinners, but of late they have taken a bit of tapping. As we update, Kuldeep Yadav has picked up the wicket of Glenn Phillips. It was a wrong-un from Kuldeep, which Phillips did not read and tried to hit on the off-side and ended up getting a leading edge which went to Hardik at point.

First, it was Devon Conway who was done by the slower one of Harshit Rana. He tried to hit the ball over the mid-off boundary, but got high on the bat, and the ball looped in the air, and Hardik inside the ring took the catch. And then it was Seifert who could not pick up Chakarvarthy's leg-spinner and tried to force the issue through the mid-wicket boundary. The ball once again took the edge and went in the air, and it was Ishan Kishan who took the catch. After a bit of pasting in the first 3 overs, this is a very good comeback in the last couple of overs.

Well, that's a cracking over from the New Zealand perspective. There was a bit of swing on offer for Arshdeep Singh, who only wanted to take the ball away from the batter, and Conway just peppering the off-side boundary through the offer. While there is a weakness for Conway around that region because of his bat grip when the bowlers don't get it right, as Arshdeep had in the previous over, it could also be a massive strength. It is Hardik Pandya who has taken the new ball from the other end.

"We are in Raipur, this also happens to be India's 100th T20I game at home. Well, this is the biggest ground, so let's start with the dimension. This is right in the centre of the ground, this strip here. So 68 metres on either side, 75 metres down the ground. A bit patchy in places, with sprouting bits here and there. But the grass that is here is kind of dead and rolled in, and you can still see quite a few cracks in and around the surface. It might play a little bit better than it looked. That was certainly the case in the previous game. It played better than it looked. But I just feel that it might be a little bit low, a little bit slow. Historically, in T20 contests, this has been a low-scoring venue. But the ODI (Vijay Hazare game) that was played here a month ago, 720 runs. I think the spinners are going to come into play. I love the boundary sizes. And if it does grip a touch early on, the spinners are certainly going to come into play with the boundary sizes. So that is a good thing. Because looking at those cracks, they might play a part. But then take a step back and you see that sheen there, that just tells the ball's going to come nicely onto the bat. It's going to skid through. It should be a high-scoring game. The other important fact of the game that you mentioned a couple of months ago, the dew was a massive, massive, had a role to play. So that makes toss very, very important. So if you win the toss, you definitely do want to chase here."

We would have also bowled. I just think the ground’s already wet. I don’t think it’s going to get any better for us. Every time you play against a quality side in their home conditions, you’ve got to learn, and we did. Obviously, the way they came out with the bat throughout the whole innings, they came out pretty hard. So we know that now on the bowling side. We’ve just got to be a little bit clearer with our plans and try to squeeze them a little bit more. We’ve got three changes - Seifert for Robertson, Christian Clark is out, Zak Foulkes is in, and Matt Henry is in for Jamieson.

I think it's always good when we bat first, put runs on the board, and if there's a little bit of dew and you go out and defend, I think that's a big positive. And the way we batted, even after when we were put under pressure in the powerplay, we were 25-2, and then we took the game till the 15th over, and then we never stopped, all the batters I think played their role really well and I think that was a big plus point. (eight batters and three strike bowlers, is this the way going forward?) I mean, it looks good. It's been working for me as a team, and so if it's working, let's continue with that. (on his batting) I mean, I felt good when I went into bat. It was perfect time for me to go into bat. Good pressure situation. I've been batting at that situation. And as I said earlier as well, I've been batting really well in the nets. It was just a matter of time when I play a few balls, bat the way I bat. And then not change my identity. (playing more on the off-side today, was it a conscious decision?) I think it came naturally. I mean, whatever strokes I played, I've been practicing really well in the last 2-3 weeks. I've batted similarly during the net session. Played a few practice games as well. So I was feeling good. (on the fielding) Yeah, I think with such a heavy dew, a few lights here and there, I mean, I'm just supporting my fielders. But yeah, I mean, we keep improving, that's one department we try and improve always when we take on the field. So very happy with the effort from the boys. (on Abhishek) My fingers are crossed. I mean, the way he prepares, I mean, it's not just how he bats in the games, but the way he prepares himself, the way he carries himself, when he's in the hotel, in the team bus. I think all those things, small small things, it reflects on the ground and he is enjoying those fruits of that.

Like Gayle, he hits them without strain—natural, instinctive, seemingly effortless. As if he could clear the ropes blindfolded or moments after being woken from sleep. In mood—which he is most of the time—he finds a way. When bowlers cramp him, he creates room. When fast bowlers bounce him, he unfurls his horizontal-bat arsenal. Both are thrilling to watch, operating in Formula One mode, yet rarely resorting to low-percentage strokes. That was the secret to Gayle’s consistency—an average of 36.22 at a strike rate of 144.75. Abhishek averages 33 (a metric that matters only alongside a strong strike rate) at a staggering 171.65. Gayle finished with 22 T20 hundreds; Abhishek already has eight.

“The first thing I do is take God’s name, ‘The wicket’s looking flat. please save me,’” he quipped to reporters after India’s 48-run win over New Zealand in the first T20I in Nagpur on Wednesday.

“Before arriving anywhere we do plan a lot, our team meetings are all about planning for the conditions and trying to get the best of the batters. If you go by the plan, more often than not, wickets come even if a lot of runs are scored,” Arshdeep added.

“I think New Zealand want Phillips, at number four, yeah, but I just don’t think they know their entire combination yet,” Doull said. “At the moment, T20 is probably Rachin Ravindra’s worst format with the bat. I think it should be Finn Allen, Tim Seifert, Daryl Mitchell, and then this man at number four, Glenn Phillips. I think that’s how the top four should look moving forward. Phillips is such a good player. I think Mitchell tends to need a little bit more time. And so number three suits him. I don’t think he’s the sort of player that can come out and just whack it from ball one. So I think he needs a little bit more time. So, number three, to me, suits him, off the back of the power of Allen and Seifert. So that’s how I think they should go.”

“We do have the opportunity to receive a lot more information than other teams. But at the same time, we would have been here about one and a half months until the World Cup,” Phillips said.

“That’s a long time to be on the road.”

“Fatigue and things like that can start kicking in. So we have to try and keep ourselves as fresh as possible in between the games. Rest up and take breaks when possible to give ourselves the best chance,” he added.

In 2025, Suryakumar scored just 218 runs 19 T20I innings at a strike rate of 123.16 and average of just 13.62. It was the first time in his career that he struck at less than 150 in a calendar year.

The 28-year-old has already translated this ballistic charge for India in the death-overs, which has contributed to 51 per cent of his career runs at an explosive 214.68 strike rate. The numbers grow otherworldly as the pressure stiffens. Rinku has already gathered 213 of his 594 career runs in the last two overs of an innings alone, striking at 287.83. The scoring rate skyrockets to 302.63 in the 20th over, the highest among all Full-Member batters who have aggregated at least 100 runs within the final-over sequence.

Raipur will be bathed in bright sunshine for much of the day and the temperature is expected to be hovering around 20 to 25 degrees Celsius in the nightime, according to Accuweather. Humidity is set to hover between a comfortable 35 to 44 percent over the course of the evening.

“He (Varun) was walking back to the mark, upright, wasn’t looking fazed by the fact that he’d been hit for a couple of sixes, and that’s always a very good sign. He’s a magician, make no mistake. He bowls brilliantly. So yes, in this format or even in the 50-over format, which will be expensive, he just has to believe, ‘Yes, next over I’m going to get my two wickets,’ and that’s what he does.” he added.

“What was the need to remove Rohit Sharma from the captaincy? I’m pretty sure that if Rohit were leading even today in the ODIs, it would have been a different result (New Zealand series) altogether. Because when he won the Champions Trophy, I think the team was going forward in the right direction,” Tiwary told in an interaction with InsideSport.

"I think he's shown his class over the last few years for us. He's kind of taken that senior bowling role for us and when he swings it up top, it's nice."

Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel/Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Varun CV