Chasing 181 in the second T20I against New Zealand in Christchurch, India were 70/5 in 10.5 overs. Naman Dhir (31) departed in the 15th over, with India at 112/6 at that point.
Following India’s thrilling win over New Zealand in the second T20I, Indian skipper Shreyas Iyer hailed Tilak Varma and Nitish Kumar Reddy for showing “immense character”, while also lauding Naman Dhir, who started the turnaround for Team India after a collapse during the middle overs. Tilak Varma and Nitish Kumar Reddy then dug deep to take India to victory with one ball to spare. The Indian cricket team once again showed its depth in T20Is on Saturday.
The Indian cricket team once again showed its depth in T20Is on Saturday. Chasing 181 in the second T20I against New Zealand in Christchurch, India were 70/5 in 10.5 overs. Then, an amazing fightback happened
The game seemed to be slipping away from India as they collapsed from 40/0 to 70/5 in 10.5 overs. However, it was Naman’s crucial cameo of 31 off 17 balls, featuring a four and three sixes, that fuelled India’s belief and gave momentum to Tilak (51* off 26 balls, with six fours and a six) and Nitish Kumar Reddy (26* off 13 balls, with a four and a six), helping India seal a four-wicket win with one ball to spare. Honestly speaking, when we lost wickets, especially consecutive wickets, we thought that the game was going away from us.
Speaking about Naman, who has been lighting up Team India with crucial cameos and contributions with the ball, Shreyas called him a “phenomenal bowler” and someone who is a “comprehensive player”. Also, when you see him move around in the field, he is a comprehensive player,” he said. When we went in, we wanted to cruise, but they bowled amazingly, especially Bracewell and Santner, the way they controlled the game in the middle,” said the skipper.
But Tilak and Reddy showed immense character, and Naman Dhir also played a great cameo. “We saw him a couple of games back at home against the West Indies. He is a phenomenal bowler as well, and once you have both aspects covered in terms of batting and bowling, I think he brings a lot of character. During the match, Naman also bowled an over, conceding just seven runs. “I think we played a lot of dot balls initially, and that piled up the required run rate as well.
Speaking during the post-match presentation after India snatched victory from the jaws of defeat, Iyer said, “I feel that every individual in our game is a match-winner, and today we saw an example of that.
