Slippery turf, testing conditions: KL Rahul keeps his cool as India take 2-0 series lead against New Zealand
toi
newspoint|08-11-2026
It has been a while since bowlers dominated a white-ball series quite so emphatically, putting batters under pressure and dictating terms. In an era of 350-plus totals and 300-run chases, these low-scoring contests have been a refreshing reminder that tight bowling, rather than brute-force batting, can make for compelling cricket.
India’s star-studded batting lineup was blown away by New Zealand’s pacers before a composed KL Rahul produced a vital, unbeaten 26 off 38 balls, including two sixes and two fours, to guide the visitors to a hard-fought four-run win via the DLS method in a rain-affected second ODI in Wellington on Thursday. Rahul, aided by vice-captain Shreyas Iyer’s 30 off 46 balls and veteran opener Rohit Sharma’s 23 off 28, made sure India’s young fast bowlers were rewarded for their excellent work. Gurnoor Brar was the standout, returning career-best figures of four for 30 in his 10 overs.
India now lead the five-match series 2-0 and will have a chance to seal it in the third ODI in Hamilton on Tuesday. Chasing 135 in 47 overs, they were in trouble at 113 for seven after 26 overs, still needing 22 with three wickets in hand, when rain returned. With the DLS par score at 109 at that point, India edged home.
Brar was India’s standout performer, using his height to extract steep bounce and operating with raw pace and aggression. He removed Tom Latham (7), Glenn Phillips (0), Mitchell Santner (31) and Nathan Smith (3). The tall Punjab pacer found strong support from Auqib Nabi, who took two for 31 in seven overs, and Anshul Kamboj, who returned two for 25 in eight. The three seamers shared eight wickets as India bowled New Zealand out for 134 in 41 overs, making full use of the pace, bounce and movement on offer.
India were never going to find the chase easy on such a surface, but the task proved tougher than expected. Skipper Shubman Gill fell for a rare first-ball duck, caught at second slip by Henry Nicholls off Jacob Duffy in the second over. Duffy struck again when Virat Kohli drove uppishly to short cover, leaving India 17/2.
Rohit lived dangerously after being dropped by Nathan Smith at deep backward square leg, but briefly counterattacked with his trademark pull shots, hitting Kyle Jamieson for two sixes. Axar Patel, promoted to No. 5, struggled for timing before ramping Matthew Fisher to deep backward point for 7 off 17 balls, leaving India 47 for four in the 13th over.
Shreyas played a few attractive strokes but once again fell to the short ball, with Jamieson dismissing him for 30. At 86 for five, India were in trouble before Rahul steadied the innings. He produced some of the shots of the match, pulling Smith for a four and a six in the 16th over before dispatching Jamieson for another six in the 23rd. India lost Naman Dhir (12) and Kamboj (1) late, but Rahul’s calm presence kept them ahead of the DLS mark.
Earlier, playing his third ODI, Nabi claimed his maiden international wicket when Tim Seifert was caught by Kamboj at mid-wicket for a duck. He then removed Will Young (11), who edged a fine delivery to Rahul. Kamboj had Nicholls playing on before Brar struck twice in the 20th over, dismissing Latham and Phillips with short-pitched deliveries.
Axar also impressed, taking 2/28 in nine overs, including the key wicket of Daryl Mitchell, who made a fighting 55 off 104 balls.
India’s star-studded batting lineup was blown away by New Zealand’s pacers before a composed KL Rahul produced a vital, unbeaten 26 off 38 balls, including two sixes and two fours, to guide the visitors to a hard-fought four-run win via the DLS method in a rain-affected second ODI in Wellington on Thursday. Rahul, aided by vice-captain Shreyas Iyer’s 30 off 46 balls and veteran opener Rohit Sharma’s 23 off 28, made sure India’s young fast bowlers were rewarded for their excellent work. Gurnoor Brar was the standout, returning career-best figures of four for 30 in his 10 overs.
India now lead the five-match series 2-0 and will have a chance to seal it in the third ODI in Hamilton on Tuesday. Chasing 135 in 47 overs, they were in trouble at 113 for seven after 26 overs, still needing 22 with three wickets in hand, when rain returned. With the DLS par score at 109 at that point, India edged home.
Brar was India’s standout performer, using his height to extract steep bounce and operating with raw pace and aggression. He removed Tom Latham (7), Glenn Phillips (0), Mitchell Santner (31) and Nathan Smith (3). The tall Punjab pacer found strong support from Auqib Nabi, who took two for 31 in seven overs, and Anshul Kamboj, who returned two for 25 in eight. The three seamers shared eight wickets as India bowled New Zealand out for 134 in 41 overs, making full use of the pace, bounce and movement on offer.
India were never going to find the chase easy on such a surface, but the task proved tougher than expected. Skipper Shubman Gill fell for a rare first-ball duck, caught at second slip by Henry Nicholls off Jacob Duffy in the second over. Duffy struck again when Virat Kohli drove uppishly to short cover, leaving India 17/2.
Rohit lived dangerously after being dropped by Nathan Smith at deep backward square leg, but briefly counterattacked with his trademark pull shots, hitting Kyle Jamieson for two sixes. Axar Patel, promoted to No. 5, struggled for timing before ramping Matthew Fisher to deep backward point for 7 off 17 balls, leaving India 47 for four in the 13th over.
Shreyas played a few attractive strokes but once again fell to the short ball, with Jamieson dismissing him for 30. At 86 for five, India were in trouble before Rahul steadied the innings. He produced some of the shots of the match, pulling Smith for a four and a six in the 16th over before dispatching Jamieson for another six in the 23rd. India lost Naman Dhir (12) and Kamboj (1) late, but Rahul’s calm presence kept them ahead of the DLS mark.
Earlier, playing his third ODI, Nabi claimed his maiden international wicket when Tim Seifert was caught by Kamboj at mid-wicket for a duck. He then removed Will Young (11), who edged a fine delivery to Rahul. Kamboj had Nicholls playing on before Brar struck twice in the 20th over, dismissing Latham and Phillips with short-pitched deliveries.
Axar also impressed, taking 2/28 in nine overs, including the key wicket of Daryl Mitchell, who made a fighting 55 off 104 balls.
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