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India beat New Zealand By four wickets in first one-day international at Vadodara Virat Kohli Still a long way from his 54th ODI hundred.
The 37-year-old batting maestro, He has scored 376 runs in the last four ODI inningslaid the foundation for India’s chase of 301 with a brilliant knock of 93 runs, including 8 boundaries and 6 boundaries, but he was dismissed by Kyle Jamieson just as a landmark century was approaching.
The Baroda crowd’s disappointment was palpable as their hero departed, but they rose to applaud Kohli, who achieved another milestone by becoming the second-highest run-scorer in all formats of international cricket.
Kohli, playing his 77th ODI 50th match, scored 28,068 runs, surpassing Sri Lankan great Kumar Sangakkara (28,016) and trailing only Indian icon Sachin Tendulkar’s 34,357.
Earlier, India won the toss and elected to bat given the dewy conditions of the second innings, but New Zealand openers Devon Conway (56) and Henry Nicholls (62) frustrated the hosts with a 117-run opening stand.
Harshit Rana provided the breakthrough as he struck two consecutive knocks to eliminate both openers and limit New Zealand’s scoring rate.
The middle order failed to capitalize on a promising start, with only Daryl Mitchell making a significant contribution, while skipper Michael Bracewell was dismissed for a direct hit off Shreyas Iyer.
Mitchell finished with 84 with 5 boundaries and 3 sixes before being trapped in front of Prasidh Krishna while trying another big knock. Kristian Clarke’s unbeaten 24 helped New Zealand add 50 runs in the last five overs to reach 300.
India’s chase got off to a rocky start with opener Rohit Sharma scoring 26, but Kohli and skipper Shubman Gill steadied things with a crucial 118-run partnership. Gill contributed a 56-year-old patient who fell shortly after receiving treatment.
Jamieson (4-41) then turned the tide of the match with a devastating spell that eliminated Ravindra Jadeja In the same match against Kohli, Iyer bowled a clean 49 and was knocked down on his stump as India fell to 242 for 5.
Rana counterattacked brilliantly and was lucky to escape a long catch in the 12th. He made New Zealand pay, scoring 29 runs before falling behind, allowing India to keep chasing.
With the pressure mounting on India to maintain their run rate, KL Rahul mustered the courage to lead the home side with an unbeaten 29 and sealed the victory with 2 fours and a six in the penultimate over.
The win gives India a 1-0 lead ahead of the second match in Rajkot on Wednesday.
Reuters