Kohli's 74 powers India to five-wicket win over New Zealand in rain-hit Auckland opener
Virat Kohli struck 74 from 51 balls as India chased a revised target of 143 to beat New Zealand by five wickets in the rain-affected first ODI at Eden Park, taking a 1-0 lead in the five-match series.
India took a 1-0 lead in their five-match one-day international series against New Zealand with a five-wicket win in a rain-hit series opener at Eden Park in Auckland on Wednesday. New Zealand were bowled out for 185 in 40.2 overs after India captain Shubman Gill won the toss and chose to bowl first, and India then chased a revised Duckworth-Lewis-Stern target of 143 in 32 overs, reaching 143 for five in 22.4 overs with 56 balls to spare. The star of the chase was Virat Kohli, playing a day before his 38th birthday. Kohli struck 74 from 51 balls, including 13 fours and a six, and reached his 80th half-century in one-day internationals with a knock full of pulls and drives that took the game away from New Zealand despite repeated rain interruptions. Kohli's innings was built on a 113-run partnership for the second wicket with Gill, who made 37. The pair steadied India after an early wicket and then accelerated, with Kohli in particular punishing anything short, before Jacob Duffy dismissed him, caught at deep square leg, to finish with three wickets. Earlier, India's young pace attack had done the damage with the ball. Arshdeep Singh led the way with four wickets for 70 runs, Gurnoor Brar took three for 44, and Anshul Kamboj claimed two for 22 in a spell that earned him the player-of-the-match award. New Zealand, who had scored 259 in a Twenty20 match at the same ground only five days earlier, never got going in the longer format. Tim Seifert top-scored for the hosts with 38, Blair Tickner made 34 and Glenn Phillips 30, but no New Zealand batter was able to build a substantial innings against seam bowling that was, in ESPNcricinfo's description, relentless, and backed by excellent fielding and captaincy. Kohli himself contributed in the field with a brilliant diving one-handed catch at slip to remove Nathan Smith for one, giving Kamboj his first wicket. Rain was a constant presence throughout the match. Showers interrupted India's reply more than once, forcing the target to be revised under the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method, first to 167 in 40 overs and then to 143 in 32 overs as the interruptions mounted. Each restart demanded a fresh calculation from the batters, and India's experience showed in the way Kohli and Gill managed the changing equation. The win was a complete team performance, and a significant one for a bowling unit missing several experienced fast bowlers. Arshdeep's four wickets, Brar's three and Kamboj's two showed the depth of India's pace reserves, while the fielding, including a diving run-out from the 39-year-old Rohit Sharma, underlined the standards Gill's side set in the field. For New Zealand, the defeat was a reminder of how quickly momentum can turn between formats. The hosts had piled up 259 in the fourth Twenty20 match on Friday, but in the one-day opener they were bundled out for a paltry total, and their bowlers, led by Duffy's three wickets, could not defend a revised target that left India with little to do once Kohli got going. The series now moves to Wellington, where the second ODI will be played on Saturday 7 November. New Zealand will need a win there to level the series, and will look to their senior batters to set a platform their bowlers can defend. India, meanwhile, will take confidence from a win built on youth with the ball and experience with the bat, and from a captain in Gill who is growing into the role. Kohli's form will be the headline for India going into Wellington. A 74 on the eve of his 38th birthday, scored at a strike rate above 145 and finished with a wave of his bat to the Indian fans who dominated the Eden Park crowd, was a reminder of his enduring class in a format he has dominated for more than a decade, and a warning to New Zealand that the series will not get easier from here.Advertisement
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