Upbeat New Zealand look for winning finish

WELLINGTON: New Zealand will look to build on their dominant performance in Hamilton and finish the five-match series on a high when they meet India in their final One-day International on Sunday (today).

India came in for a stern wake-up call in the Hamilton ODI when their batting line-up was found wanting against the swinging ball – a quality exponent of it, Trent Boult, returned 5-21 as India were bowled out for 92, their lowest total in New Zealand.

With Virat Kohli rested for the remainder of the series, and after both Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan fell early, India’s middle order crumbled under the pressure exerted by some disciplined New Zealand bowling.

Their problems were compounded by the absence of the rested Mahendra Singh Dhoni, as India experiment ahead of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2019.

The onus will be on the batsmen – Ambati Rayudu, Dinesh Karthik, Kedar Jadhav and Hardik Pandya – to come back strong in Wellington, and make their minutes count ahead of the mega event this summer.

Shubman Gill, whose ODI debut in Hamilton didn’t go to plan, will also likely have another opportunity to shine. Impress consistently, and he may well be rewarded with a place in the squad for the World Cup.

For New Zealand, Hamilton was much-needed. They had already lost the first three games, but their determined performance showed character. Boult’s unbroken spell of 10 overs was complemented by Colin de Grandhomme, and the batsmen made light work of the chase, finishing it off inside 15 overs.

That said, the hosts will want more of the same. Their batsmen, who looked out of sorts earlier in the series, showed glimpses of form as Martin Guptill scored boundaries off his first three balls before getting dismissed, and Henry Nicholls, promoted to open the batting, chipped in with a handy 30.

Boult’s spell meant that Jimmy Neesham, who returned to the XI after an injury, had only five balls to bowl before the last Indian wicket fell. He will hope to get a longer run in the final ODI, and excel with both bat and ball in the manner that made him a star against Sri Lanka.

New Zealand will be without Guptill in the final ODI, though. The opener suffered a back injury while training on the eve of the match. Colin Munro, who was released to play the Super Smash, will rejoin the squad as replacement.