New Zealand VS India Match ball by ball Commentary

Signing off - That's all from yet another entertaining night in Christchurch, with New Zealand once again ending up on the losing side. With this result, their margin for error is now gone as the teams move to Wellington. The third T20I takes place on Tuesday, 27th October, with the first ball scheduled for 7 am GMT (12.30 pm IST). As always, you can join us early for the build-up. Until then, take care and goodbye!

The captain of India - Shreyas Iyer believes every individual in the side is a match-winner and feels Nitish Kumar Reddy and Tilak Varma showed great character to turn the game around after India lost consecutive wickets. He also credits Naman Dhir for his crucial contribution, describing him as a complete player who brings a lot of character to the side. Iyer admits that India's early struggle to find boundaries and the number of dot balls pushed up the required run rate, while acknowledging that New Zealand's spinners bowled beautifully. On the fielding front, he says the message was to anticipate every ball and make the opposition think twice before attempting twos.

The captain of New Zealand - Mitchell Santner says that it was a good game and that they unfortunately lost their way against Naman, Tilak and Nitish at the end, and that cost them the game. Santner says that they were good at the start with the ball and he feels that they did well in the initial stage, but a couple of no-balls in the way did hurt them a bit. On Jacobs and Glenn, Santner says that Glenn Phillips has been doing it time and again, but in Bevon they have found a really good player, and with the power both of them have, it becomes easy for the other. On Matt Henry going off the field, Santner says that it was precautionary and informs that they will be looking to rotate a bit more in the next game, as Lockie Ferguson went off the field too.

PLAYER OF THE MATCH - No prizes for guessing, Tilak Varma has been given the accolade for his match-winning knock of 51 not out off 26 balls. On playing the situation, Tilak says that he was just looking to take the game deep, and his conversation with the coaching staff prior to the game helped him keep his calm and stay confident in his abilities. On the belief of pulling off the chase, Tilak says that the wicket was on the slower side compared to the last game, and he had a word with Naman regarding running well between the wickets, but he was unfortunate to get out to Santner after playing well, but at the end, the Hyderabadi pair of him and Nitish got things done.

Time for the presentation ceremony...

Recovered but not enough - It was the same strip as the first game, but it played slower tonight, and New Zealand's top three went too hard too early without giving themselves enough time to assess the conditions. India were up for the challenge, both with their execution with the ball and their work in the field, and it showed. For the hosts, the recovery came with a 116-run stand between Glenn Phillips and Bevon Jacobs, who were watchful at the start before shifting gears. Phillips was the dominant partner, while Jacobs tussled to find the middle of his bat and also got a reprieve along the way when Iyer dropped him on 18.

India find a way back from the brink - New Zealand leaked runs aplenty in the Powerplay in the first game, but were far more disciplined this time around to deny India a flying start. The only real blemish was Jacob Duffy overstepping when Abhishek Sharma was caught in the deep, but luckily for the hosts, Abhishek could not do much damage. Through the middle phase, Mitchell Santner weaved his magic with a four-wicket haul, while Michael Bracewell held his end up well, even if the wickets did not come his way. With India needing 68 off 30 balls, New Zealand had the game under control and looked well placed to close it out. But as Tilak Varma and Nitish Kumar Reddy began their charge, the errors began to creep in for the hosts, both with the ball and in the field. The duo seized the opportunity to turn the game around, and it once again underlined the value of India's batting depth as they pulled off an improbable chase.

India extend the lead - The Men in Blue mark their 300th T20I with their 200th win, and they have done it from an unlikely position, which makes the achievement all the more special. New Zealand had India in check for the most part but lost control towards the end and faltered under pressure. The disappointment is evident on Mitchell Santner and his men's faces as the two teams exchange handshakes.