Kishan smashes 10 sixes as India crush New Zealand to win series 4-1

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM (Agencies): Ishan Kishan smashed a 42-ball hundred as India showcased their batting firepower ahead of this month’s Twenty20 World Cup, beating New Zealand by 46 runs here on Saturday to seal a 4-1 series win. Kishan clobbered 10 sixes in an incendiary 103 off 43 balls to anchor India’s imposing 271-5 at the Greenfield International Stadium. New Zealand opener Finn Allen hammered six sixes in a 38-ball 80 to give the chase early momentum but they were bowled out for 225 after seamer Arshdeep Singh took a career-best 5-51. Earlier, Kishan, who missed the previous game in Visakhapatnam with a niggle, returned at number three and tore into the attack from the outset. Ish Sodhi bore the brunt in the 12th over, when Kishan lashed four fours and two sixes in a seven-ball over that cost 29 runs. After playing second fiddle to Kishan for much of their rapid 137-run stand off 58 balls, India captain Suryakumar Yadav (63) exhibited his own power-hitting prowess by smashing three sixes in a Jacob Duffy over. Kishan brought up his 100 with a six before Duffy deceived him with a slow bouncer and Hardik Pandya smacked four sixes in his 42 off 17 balls down the order. New Zealand lost opener Tim Sei­fert cheaply but Allen and Rachin Ravindra (30) kept them in the hunt with a century stand before their chase was derailed. After spinner Axar Patel (3-33) removed Allen and Glenn Phillips, seamer Arshdeep demolished the New Zealand middle order to claim his maiden five-wicket haul in T20 Internationals.

SCOREBOARD

INDIA

A Sharma b Ferguson 30

S Samson c Jacobs b Ferguson 6

I Kishan c Phillips b Duffy 103

S Yadav st Seifert b Santner 63

H Pandya c Jacobs b Jamieson 42

R Singh not out 8

S Dube not out 7

EXTRAS (NB-2, W-10) 12

TOTAL (for five wickets, 20 overs) 271

DID NOT BAT: A. Patel, A. Singh, V. Chakravarthy, J. Bumrah

FALL OF WICKETS: 1-31 (Samson), 2-48 (Sharma), 3-185 (Yadav), 4-233 (Kishan), 5-261 (Pandya)

BOWLING: Duffy 4-0-53-1 (1w), Jamieson 4-0-59-1 (4w, 1nb), Ferguson 4-0-41-2 (1nb), Sodhi 3-0-48-0 (1w), Phillips 1-0-10-0, Santner 4-0-60-1

NEW ZEALAND

T Seifert c Pandya b A. Singh 5

F Allen c R. Singh b Patel 80

R Ravindra c Patel b A. Singh 30

G Phillips c R. Singh b Patel 7

D Mitchell b A. Singh 26

M Santner c Yadav b A. Singh 0

B Jacobs b Varun 7

K Jamieson b A. Singh 9

I Sodhi c A. Singh b R. Singh 33

L Ferguson b Patel 3

J Duffy not out 9

EXTRAS (B-8, LB-4, W-4) 16

TOTAL (all out, 19.4 overs) 225

FALL OF WICKETS: 1-17 (Seifert), 2-117 (Allen), 3-131 (Phillips), 4-137 (Ravindra), 5-137 (Santner), 6-166 (Jacobs), 7-179 (Jamieson), 8-180 (Mitchell), 9-191 (Ferguson)

BOWLING: A. Singh 4-0-51-5 (1w), Pandya 2-0-15-0, Bumrah 4-0-58-0 (1w), Chakravarthy 4-0-36-1, Patel 4-0-33-3, Sharma 1-0-13-0, R. Singh 0.4-0-7-1.

RESULT: India won by 46 runs

SERIES: India won five-match series 4-1