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New Zealand hosted India at Seddon Park in Hamilton for the 1st ODI of the three-match series as the Black caps looked to perform better than the way they did in the T20Is. On a brilliant batting wicket, the Kiwis won the toss and elected to bowl first.
India managed to post a huge total of 347 for the loss of four wickets, thanks to some great batting from Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, and Virat Kohli. A target of 348 looked challenging, especially considering the fact that there was no Kane Williamson in the New Zealand batting department.
However, the hosts chased down the total quite easily due to some fearless cricket from the likes of Henry Nicholls, Ross Taylor, and Tom Latham. The Kiwis won the match by four wickets, which means India are now on the backfoot for the first time in the tour.
Here, we are going to take a look at the top three performers from the match.
#3 Tom Latham
While it was hard not to include KL Rahul for his blistering 88 from 64 balls, it is fair to say that Tom Latham deserves to be in this list as it was his innings of 69 off 47 balls that made the chase so easy for the Kiwis.
He came in when New Zealand had lost a set batsman in the form of Henry Nicholls (78 from 82 balls), and instead of going into a shell, the skipper played a fearless knock. His innings was laced with eight fours and two sixes as he didn't let any Indian bowler settle into their rhythm.
It was a proper captain's knock from New Zealand's pocket dynamo.
#2 Shreyas Iyer
Shreyas Iyer's first-ever ODI century came in a losing cause but that shouldn't take away anything from the kind of innings he played on the day. Iyer came in just before the first powerplay ended and stayed at the crease until the 46th over.
The 25-year-old smashed 103 runs from 107 balls, with eleven fours and one six. Throughout this tour, Iyer has done everything right at the number four spot and right now, it seems, India might have finally found a solution to their long-standing problem.
#1 Ross Taylor
Cometh the hour, cometh the man! What an innings it was from Ross Taylor, and it was a timely reminder for everyone that the New Zealander is one of the best middle-order batsmen this generation has seen.
The 35-year-old took the Indian bowling attack to the cleaners, especially Shardul Thakur and Kuldeep Yadav. Taylor managed to remain not out for 109 from 84 balls, with 10 fours and four sixes. In the T20I matches, he failed to see his team through on a few occasions but in the first ODI, he made sure he was there till the very end. It was an incredible innings from Taylor, to say the least.
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