New Zealand Gallops to Victory and Series Sweep
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EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE DELHI THE HINDU 18 SPORT TUESDAY, MARCH 3, 2020 EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE New Zealand gallops to victory and series sweep India’s abject surrender is complete as hosts win by seven wickets captain fended into the cor INDIA IN NZ don, and then sent down the arms. He was held at deep the bowler’s head for a six. squareleg off Southee. S. Dinakar pacy offcutter that account He then struck the left Christchurch ed for the attractive Tom armer cleanly past midon to Blundell (55), the Indian at Jadeja fires the ropes. The rout was complete. The tack did not appear It was left to Ravindra Jadeja, Indians had nowhere to hide But then, things have not threatening. that wonderful athlete, to at the Hagley Oval. Out been going right for India in The fluent lefthander, launch into the bowling. He played in both skill and stra did just that. the series. And sure enough, Tom Latham (52), was the a mixup with Jadeja saw tegy by the New Zealanders, A natural striker of the the Indians seemed to be only other wicket to fall, well Bumrah being run out. caught by a leaping Rishabh ball, the lefthander waded looking for the earliest flight into Boult, striking a full The Indians had run out to catch home. Pant as he attempted to pull Umesh Yadav. length delivery straight over of gas too. Clinical approach Fine start New Zealand, clinical with SCOREBOARD its endgame skills and win New Zealand’s opening pair of Latham and Blundell ning the key moments of the INDIA — 1ST INNINGS: 242 NEW ZEALAND BOWLING played with the right blend game, won the second Test NEW ZEALAND — 1ST INNINGS: Southee 112363, Boult 144 of offence and defence un by a whopping seven wickets 235 284, Jamieson 84180, der a cloud cover, with a stiff and swept the series 20 on INDIA — 2ND INNINGS Grandhomme 5331, Wagner Monday, only the third day wind blowing across the Prithvi Shaw c Latham b 81181. of the Test. ground. The duo’s 103run Southee (14, 24b, 2x4), Mayank NEW ZEALAND — 2ND INNINGS The exciting Kyle Jamie opening partnership settled Agarwal lbw b Boult 3 (6b), Tom Latham c Pant b Umesh 52 son was ManoftheMatch the issue. Cheteshwar Pujara b Boult 24 (74b, 10x4), Tom Blundell b Bumrah 55 (113b, 8x4, 1x6), and ace of swing Tim South Blundell crouches in his (88b, 2x4), Virat Kohli lbw b stance but if the ball is Grandhomme 14 (30b, 3x4), Kane Willamson c Rahane b ee PlayeroftheSeries. Bumrah 5 (8b, 1x4), Ross Taylor pitched short, he can quick Ajinkya Rahane b Wagner 9 India added only 34 runs (not out) 5 (9b, 1x4), Henry ly stand tall and drive the (43b, 1x4), Umesh Yadav b Boult for its last four wickets in the 1 (12b), Hanuma Vihari c Watling Nicholls (not out) 5 (13b, 1x4); sphere to the cover fence. A * morning — the lateorder Highfliers: The New Zealanders have every reason to be pleased having comprehensively beaten India in the Test series.AP b Southee 9 (18b, 2x4), Rishabh Extras (b1, lb8, nb1): 10; Total fightback remaining an illu fine backfoot player, he was Pant c Watling b Boult 12 (14b), (for three wkts. in 36 overs): sion — and a target of 132 was airborne as he punched collected runs with typical work and strokeplay are dic Trent Boult, who had left and come up with the Ravindra Jadeja (not out) 16 132. hardly going to stretch New Umesh through point and efficiency. He timed Bumrah tated by the length of the bowled magnificently in this ball. (22b, 1x4, 1x6), Mohammed FALL OF WICKETS Zealand. rose on his toes to strike Mo to the cover fence, the ball ball. innings with his leftarmer’s Then Pant perished to a Shami c Blundell b Southee 5 1103 (Latham, 27.6), 2112 (Wil Kane Williamson’s men al hammed Shami between meeting the sweet spot in His backlift is measured angle and precision in his tame push as Boult angled (11b), Jasprit Bumrah run out 4 liamson 30.6), 3121 (Blundell, 32.5). so picked up 120 points from point and cover. the willow. and there are occasions swing, and Southee teamed one across the lefthander. (8b, 1x4); Extras (b9, lb12): 21. The opener with a rather After lunch, Latham when his boundaries are just up again. Picked more for the Xfactor Total (in 46 overs): 124. INDIA BOWLING the series. New Zealand, in Bumrah 132392, Umesh 143 high backlift also ondrove pulled and hooked short an extension of a defensive in his batting than ’keeping FALL OF WICKETS all, has 180 points while In Wickets continued to tum 451, Shami 31110, Jadeja 50 Shami — who bowled despite pitched offerings from push. in the eleven, India needed 18 (Agarwal, 1.5), 226 (Shaw, dia stays on 360. ble. Hanuma Vihari was a 8.1), 351 (Kohli, 17.1), 472 (Ra 240, Kohli 1040. a “batting impact injury” — Umesh. The Kiwi innings Pant to go after the bowling Save Jasprit Bumrah after In the morning, the In tad unlucky, though, at hane, 30.3), 584 (Pujara, 33.1), ManoftheMatch: Jamieson. lunch, when he fired out and gloriously coverdrove was galloping along. dians had to build partner tempting to work Southee instead of coming up with 689 (Umesh, 35.1), 797 (Vi ManoftheSeries: Southee. Kane Williamson with a Bumrah to the fence. Latham is a compact or ships, see through the first fine only to see ’keeper BJ. ‘nothing’ shots. hari, 38.4), 897 (Pant, 39.3), 9 New Zealand won by seven mean lifter which the Kiwi At the other end, Latham ganised player whose foot hour. They didn’t. Watling fling himself to his Shami, at least, freed his 108 (Shami, 42.4). wickets to sweep series 2-0. Didn’t play to our potential, admits Kohli Williamson pleased at outplaying world’s best S. Dinakar Kiwi skipper enthused by Jamieson’s rise as an allrounder Christchurch Special Correspondent Virat Kohli’s demeanour re Christchurch flected his mood. Kane Williamson flashed a He was bitterly disappoint smile before getting down to ed at India’s capitulation. answering questions. He was There was no fight, no resis pleased by his team’s 20 tance as the Indians slumped sweep over the No. 1ranked to yet another defeat on day Test team in the world. three here. This was New Zealand’s On India’s last tour of sixth straight Test series win South Africa, Kohli had spo at home and even in his mo ken passionately following ment of triumph, William India’s Test series defeat at son was measured and in Centurion. He had said: “To sightful with his views. No win Test series abroad you brave talk, just plain com got to keep thinking and mon sense. dreaming about it everyday.” Well played! Indians congratulate the New Zealanders at the end of the match.* AP Plainspeak Pragmatic we played in this series. take away from here is to not Kohli was not willing to It was a lot like his flowing But then, as he answered “Every challenge that shy away from things that blame any particular bat batting and smart captaincy. questions here on Monday, comes our way, we try to take have gone wrong. Instead, sman for getting stuck at the No fancy stuff; just hard sub Kohli appeared more prag it headon. I feel like we were address them straight up, crease. “You take the hit col stance. The New Zealand matic. He had taken the hard completely outplayed in this and not be in denial. Accep lectively,” he said. captain said: “An outstand knocks as a batsman and cap series. There is no shame in tance is the first word.” ing performance. I don’t tain in the series. He was sob being outplayed at the inter The India skipper elabo On Pant think the result reflects how er; that fire you saw at Centu national level.” rated: “Because we do have a On Rishabh Pant not deliver competitive this match was. rion was missing. He added: “We obviously lot of cricket away from home ing despite being given Perhaps another 50 more Kohli said: “Obviously, didn’t play the kind of cricket coming this season. chances, he said, “You got to runs from the Indians would quite disappointed with how we do as a team. The thing to “It is something we are op strike a balance. have made it quite a ba timistic about, and looking “You cannot push a player lancedlooking game.” forward to. Things that have out too early. It can damage Williamson said his team were a massive factor. Even Queried on Trent Boult’s he looks to approach his in not gone right here, we his confidence.” had stepped up after the de if you do adapt quickly, you magnificent bowling, he nings. His runs were very va would like to be in similar sit Kohli said the team was bacle against Australia. “We may still have a good ball said: “He’s a fantastic bowler luable.