India vs New Zealand 2017, 2nd ODI: Hits and Misses

Twin fifties in the batting line-up coupled with consistency in the bowling set-up helped India displace New Zealand's lead in the three-match ODI series in Pune on Wednesday (October 25). The series hangs in the balance now, with each side winning one game. The decider of the series, which will be played later this week, is a crucial match for Virat Kohli's men. They have to sustain their record of 9 series victories on the trot.

If they perform anywhere close to how they performed today, they have a substantial chance of taking the series home. Here are the hits and misses from the second ODI:

#1 Hit: Bhuvneshwar Kumar

One of the major reasons behind the recent success of Virat Kohli’s team is its dependable, efficient and disciplined bowling attack. Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been a constant presence in that bowling attack. In Pune, he showed why his presence is extremely crucial for the team in this format of the game.

His terrific opening spell crippled New Zealand’s opening stand, thereby pushing the hosts on the back foot from the word go. Kumar is a master of swing, and this was clearly on display throughout his spell at the MCA stadium. After his exploits at the beginning of the innings, the 27-year-old came to India’s aid yet again in the middle overs. Henry Nicholls and Colin de Grandhomme steadied the Kiwi ship with a 47-run stand and looked ready to propel the visitors towards a strong finish.

That’s when Kumar decided to strike again and smashed the woodwork behind Nicholls’ willow. The Player of the Match gave just 45 runs in his entire spell, which comprised 10 overs.

#2 Miss: Kane Williamson

The New Zealand skipper has not been able to hit his purple patch till now in this series. His string of meagre scores extended itself yet again, when the right-handed batsman was dismissed for a single-digit score.

Both Kumar and Bumrah executed their plans to utmost perfection, targeting Williamson’s stumps from the moment he stepped onto the crease. The latter finally got the better of the Kiwi skipper, who shook his head ruefully after the umpire raised his finger. He took the review, but umpire’s call meant the 27-year-old had no option but to trudge back to the pavilion in disappointment.

His wicket reduced the visitors to 27-3, a score that put them in an extremely perilous situation on an inconsistent pitch. It put the breaks on their scoring even before they could truly accelerate. It stunted their total to a below par score of 230, a target that was a little too easy for the star-studded Indian batting lineup.

#3 Hit: Jasprit Bumrah

If Kumar troubles the opposition with his swing, Bumrah kills it with his pace and precision. There hasn’t been a single match in the recent past where the youngster has looked out of sorts. He might not have been amongst the wickets, but has never looked out of his league till now.

He was amongst the wicket in Pune though. He complemented Kumar beautifully and stunned the Kiwis with his terrific bowling throughout the game. His went at just 3.8 runs per over and his yorkers were delivered to perfection as usual.

He dismissed New Zealand’s best batsman, trapping Williamson LBW for 3 off 14 deliveries. He was back to his deadliest form in the death overs. The irony was that the ball which got him his second wicket was probably the worst delivery of his spell. However, that does not take anything away from the fact that he deserved that wicket. He probably deserved ten more!

#4 Miss: Martin Guptill

The swashbuckling opener from Auckland could not trouble the scorers (or the Indians) much today. He fell to a sensational spell of swing bowling from Bhuvneshwar Kumar and walked back to the dressing room in the third over of the game.

He scored just 11 runs off 9 deliveries and looked unsure of how to handle the terrific opening spell from India’s seam-bowling duo.

His dismissal opened the floodgates for India early on in the innings, and New Zealand were reduced to 27-3 before they could get a hold of what was happening on the pitch.

#5 Hit: The Karthik-Dhawan Partnership

When the target is around 230 and the batting side loses an early wicket, the chase always enters tricky territory. That’s exactly what happened with India in this game after Sharma was dismissed in the fifth over of the game. Kohli, too, could not capitalize on his steady start and fell for an average score of 29.

Number 4 has been a headache for the Indian team. They have tried and retired several batsmen in the position, but none of them have managed to stay there permanently. In Pune, Dinesh Karthik took a strong step towards making the spot his own.

He stepped up when India were at an unsafe score of 78-2 after 14 overs, and built a hefty 66-run partnership with the left-handed Shikhar Dhawan. His well-structured knock of 64 off 92 deliveries was conducive to India’s easy victory at the end of it all. The right-hander remained unbeaten through the innings.

Dhawan, who returned to the ODI setup after missing the Australia series last month, came into his own in this game. He scored 68 brilliant runs off just 84 balls and looked completely comfortable in the middle.

#6 Miss: Rohit Sharma

India’s top two rarely fail to deliver. They are arguably the most consistent opening pair in ODI cricket today. However, they have not been able to sustain their stability in the last two games.

While it was Dhawan who failed to get going in Mumbai in the first ODI, it was Sharma who fell early in Pune. His soft dismissal was brought about by Tim Southee, who got the wicket off a half volley. The ball was bowled at his pads and the batsman flicked it straight to Colin Munro. It was as easy a catch as you will witness in international cricket.

Sharma has managed just 29 runs in the two games that have been played in the series so far. He has one last shot at adding to that tally in the third and final ODI of the series, which is scheduled to be played in Kanpur on October 29. Will the right-handed batsman be able to make something off this series?