Rishabh Pant: Top 10 funny memes as Team India's top order fails miserably in the 3rd T20I against New Zealand

Team India's top order continues to be a concern for the side after another failure in the final T20I of the three-match series against New Zealand on Tuesday, November 22, at McLean Park in Napier.

New Zealand batted first after winning the toss and put up a decent total of 160. The Kiwis could have added a few more runs to that tally if not for an unexpected collapse in the death overs.

Devon Conway (59) and Glenn Phillips (54) starred for the hosts in the batting department. Mohammed Siraj (4/17) and Arshdeep Singh (4/37) starred with the ball for India.

In response, Ishan Kishan (10 off 11 balls) and Rishabh Pant (11) tried to play aggressively from the onset. However, both perished cheaply by playing rash shots, much to the fans' frustration.

Shreyas Iyer's tryst with short-pitched bowling continued as he departed for a golden duck in the third over, leaving his side in a heap of trouble at 21/3.

Indian cricket fans were highly disappointed to see poor showings from Kishan and Pant in the top order after getting repeated chances. They pointed out that talented players like Shubman Gill and Sanju Samson were warming the bench. Fans trolled the openers on social media platforms for the same through some hilarious memes.

Hardik Pandya's 30* keeps India afloat after a top-order collapse before the match ended in a tie

After losing three early wickets, Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya did not go into their shells. They resorted to counter-attacking gameplay at this juncture and kept their scoring rate brisk. Ish Sodhi provided New Zealand with a massive breakthrough by dismissing Suryakumar in the seventh over.

Hardik (30*) then led Team India to 75/4 in nine overs, along with Deepak Hooda (nine*), before rain intervened in the proceedings. The scores were level at the nine-over mark according to the Duckworth-Lewis (DLS) method. The contest ended in a tie due to persistent rain.

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Balakrishna has been a cricket writer at Sportskeeda for almost seven years. A sport that he has been following and playing since he was eight, Balakrishna enjoys the intensity of the sport, skills and strategies applied to get a result out of nowhere, and the thrill that it gives. He also played as a medium pace bowling all-rounder in four inter-college tournaments, winning twice.

Balakrishna’s all-time favorite cricketers are Sachin Tendulkar and Rohit Sharma. He admires Sachin’s stellar performances against legendary bowlers, along with his discipline and humility. Meanwhile, he is a big fan of how Rohit turned around his initial struggles to build a successful career.

He avidly supports Team India and 2016 IPL winners SunRisers Hyderabad. The first World Cup that Balakrishna ever saw was the 2003 World Cup, when Australia comprehensively triumphed over India in the final.

While working, he ensures he only uses reliable sources and provides relevant, ethical, and accurate information. When not working, Balakrishna enjoys playing table tennis and reading non-fiction books.

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