India vs New Zealand, 2017 ODI series: 5 talking points

The Indian team came into the 2017 season as the clear favourites and, barring the ICC Champions Trophy, Virat Kohli and his men have had convincing performances in all the tournaments played thus far.

The recently-concluded three-match ODI series against New Zealand was an exception; though India did win the series, the Kiwis did not go down without a tough fight.

Let’s take a look at the five talking points of this series.

#5 Virat Kohli’s purple patch continues

The run machine

Proving why he is India’s best match winner in limited overs cricket, Kohli once again rose to the occasion against NZ.

His century in the tough conditions at Mumbai showed his determination to take the team to a respectable total. Kohli was the highest run-scorer of the series, and also grabbed the Player of the Series award.

#4 New Zealand missing an extra spinner

Santner silently stopped the free flow of runs

Mitchell Santner was the only spinner in the playing XI. He bowled a match-winning spell in the opener of the 2016 World T20 against India at Nagpur on a turning track, significantly troubling the Indian batsmen. Even in the bilateral series in 2016, he was vital in containing runs.

In all three ODIs, Santner's economy was far lower than India's run rate. If NZ had played an extra spinner (like Ish Sodhi), that would have made it much tougher for the Indian batsmen to score runs in the middle overs.

#3 Tom Latham’s form

Latham's exit in the third ODI kept NZ from victory

New Zealand arrived in India with a change in its batting lineup.

Tom Latham, who previously played in the top order, was moved to No. 5 and bestowed the role of wicketkeeper. Latham grabbed the opportunity and did not let the team down in either role, negating India’s spin bowling with ease.

If not for his run out in the third ODI, NZ would have had a strong chance of pulling off a victory.

#2 India's big hitters not meeting expectations

The Indian middle order left much to be desired

Hardik Pandya had a fantastic series against Australia, proving to be the match-winning all-rounder that India has been looking for for a while. His adaptability to play under crunch circumstances and at any position is a big asset to the team.

However, Pandya was unable to deliver against New Zealand. M. S. Dhoni’s slow innings in the first ODI denied India an extra 20-25 runs which would have proved vital. Kedar Jadhav's performance too was lacklustre in the first ODI.

#1 Dinesh Karthik's ODI comeback

Karthik seems to have made an effective comeback

Dinesh Karthik made a comeback to the Indian ODI squad for the West Indies tour in June 2017 after more than three years. Karthik replaced a struggling Yuvraj Singh and scored a 50 in the final ODI, thus sealing the series against the Windies.

Against NZ too, he did not disappoint - support to Kohli in the first ODI, and scoring a valuable half-century in the second, Karthik has clearly signalled to the selectors that he is available for future selection. The only question that remains is what kind of an impact player he will be, compared to Manish Pandey and the other middle order batsmen.