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PICS: Shami stars as India maul New Zealand in 2nd ODI

January 21, 2023

Images from the second One-Day International between India and New Zealand, at Raipur.

IMAGE: Mohammed Shami celebrates shattering the stumps of New Zealand opener Finn Allen during the second ODI, at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Cricket Stadium, in Raipur, on Saturday. Photograph: BCCI

India's relentless pace battery ran through a fragile New Zealand batting line-up as the hosts cantered to an eight-wicket victory in the second ODI to seal the three-match series, in Raipur, on Saturday.

The Mohammed Shami-led attack produced an incisive effort to shoot out New Zealand for a meagre 108 before India knocked off the runs in 20.1 overs.

 

Rohit Sharma scored a sublime 50 off 51 balls while Shubman Gill remained unbeaten on 40 off 53 deliveries.

It was an emphatic victory but the sea of fans that had flocked the remotely-located Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh Stadium for Raipur's first international game were left wanting for more due to the early finish.

IMAGE: Rohit Sharma pirouettes on one foot to dispatch the ball to the boundary. Photograph: BCCI

Shami (3/18) and Mohammed Siraj (1/10) made life tough for the batters with their high-quality seam bowling, reducing New Zealand to a dismal 15 for 5 after Rohit opted to bowl.

The odd ball stopping made the New Zealand batters' job tougher though the Indian openers made batting look easy in the evening.

The third and final ODI will be played in Indore on Tuesday.

India were clinical in the run-chase, with Rohit enthralling the crowd with his trademark pull shots. One of them went for a six, the first maximum of the game, as he hooked Lockie Ferguson over fine-leg.

IMAGE: Shubman Gill plays the reverse-hit during his 53-ball 40. Photograph: BCCI

Fresh from a double hundred in Hyderabad, Gill too came up with some exquisite strokes, including a cracking cover drive off lockie Ferguson.

The New Zealand pacers failed to get as much seam movement as their Indian counterparts, making the task easier for the batters.

Rohit completed his fifty with a single in the 13th over before Henry Shipley had him leg before wicket with a ball that kept low.

IMAGE: Virat Kohli stumped by wicketkeeper Tom Latham. Photograph: BCCI

Virat Kohli received the loudest cheer from the crowd as usual but could only last nine balls as Mitchell Santner got the better of him for the second time in as many games.

Earlier, New Zealand's innings had a disastrous start. Opener Finn Allen was the first to depart after missing a full ball that came back in late to clip the pads and shatter the stumps.

Siraj then got one to seam away from good length, inducing an outside edge from number three Henry Nicholls and Shubman Gill did the rest in the slips.

IMAGE: Virat Kohli stumped by wicketkeeper Tom Latham. Photograph: BCCI

Phillips was New Zealand's top-scorer with 36 off 52 balls. Photograph: BCCI

Two brilliant return catches from Shami and Hardik Pandya (2/16) put New Zealand in further trouble.

Shami got one to shape away and Daryl Mitchell, in his attempt to flick it on the on-side, ended up mistiming it back to the bowler.

Hardik's one-handed catch to get rid of Devon Conway in the 10th over was sensational.

IMAGE: Mohammed Shami takes a caught and bowled chance to send New Zealand's Daryl Mitchell back. Photograph: BCCI

Shardul Thakur (1/26) got himself into the wicket column in the following over by drawing a thick edge from Tom Latham's bat. It was a loose shot from the New Zealand skipper, ending with an easy catch to Gill in the slips.

New Zealand were in dire straits, but all hope was not lost with last match's centurion Michael Bracewell (22) and the equally dangerous Glenn Phillips (36) in the middle.

IMAGE: Hardik Pandya celebrates with Virat Kohli after dismissing Devon Conway. Photograph: BCCI

Bracewell made his intent clear by stepping out to whack Shami over cover. After getting hit for consecutive fours in the 19th over, Shami bowled a sharp bouncer and Bracewell went for the pull only to edge it back to the keeper.

Mitchell Santer (27), who scored a fifty in Hyderabad, joined Phillips and duo took the team past 100 with a 47-run stand for the seventh wicket.

IMAGE: India's skipper Rohit Sharma congratulates Washington Sundar on dismissing Glenn Phillips. Photograph: BCCI

However, both were dismissed in a space of six balls to end New Zealand's hopes of a recovery.

While Santner played a well-disguised slower ball from Hardik on to the stumps, Phillips gave a regulation catch to Suryakumar Yadav at deep midwicket off a long hop from Washington Sundar (2/7).

Kuldeep Yadav (1/29) trapped number 11 Blair Tickner in front to end the New Zealand innings in 34.3 overs.

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