HAMILTON: New Zealand defeated India by seven wickets in the fifth and final T20I of the five-match series yesterday.
Despite the defeat, India won the series 3-2 after taking an unassailable lead by winning the first three matches. However, the decision to leave teenage batter Vaibhav Sooryavanshi out of the playing XI once again drew criticism from various quarters.
The 15-year-old featured in only two matches in the series. India head coach Gautam Gambhir also faced criticism over the decision. Responding to the criticism ahead of the match, Gambhir made it clear that his job was to pick the right players and not to please everyone.
“First of all, let me make this clear. My job is not to make everyone happy. My job is to make the right decisions, not the decisions that everyone wants me to make. That is why I am in this position,” Gambhir said.
After winning the toss, New Zealand elected to bowl and restricted India to 191 for eight. The hosts chased down the target in just 18 overs, losing three wickets.
India lost openers Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma early before Ishan Kishan (61) and Shreyas Iyer (50) steadied the innings. However, New Zealand’s bowlers kept the scoring in check, with Adam Milne taking four wickets for 19 runs.
In reply, Tim Seifert smashed 93 off 50 balls, while Glenn Phillips remained unbeaten on 65 off 38 deliveries. Their contributions helped New Zealand complete a comfortable seven-wicket victory. Bhuvneshwar Kumar conceded 41 runs without taking a wicket, while Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakravarthy and Nitish Kumar Reddy picked up one wicket each.