In the final over of the first T20I against New Zealand, Shivam Dube struck twice in successive deliveries, dismissing Daryl Mitchell and Kristian Clarke. The all-rounder came close to completing a hat-trick, but Kyle Jamieson managed to see off the next ball, denying Dube a place in the record books. Had he succeeded, Dube would have become only the second Indian to take a T20I hat-trick.

So far, Deepak Chahar remains the sole Indian to have achieved the milestone in the format. He picked up a hat-trick during the third T20I against Bangladesh in 2019, a feat that also came at the VCA Stadium in Nagpur, the same venue that hosted the India–New Zealand series opener. In that match, Chahar dismissed Shafiul Islam, Mustafizur Rahman and Aminul Islam as the hosts won the match by 30 runs.

India take 1-0 lead over New Zealand.
Batting first, Abhishek Sharma wreaked havoc against New Zealand. The southpaw smacked 84 runs off 35 balls, which will only give him plenty of confidence leading to the T20 World Cup 2026. Captain Suryakumar Yadav also showed positive signs after a period of struggling with form. He made 32 runs before Rinku Singh arrived at the crease and stole the show. The Aligarh-born smacked an unbeaten 44 runs off 20 balls, helping India post 238 runs in the first innings, which is India’s highest-ever against New Zealand.

When it came to the chase, New Zealand lost early wickets, courtesy of a brilliant spell from Arshdeep Singh and Hardik Pandya. However, Glenn Phillips managed to put the hosts under some pressure, scoring 78 runs off 40 balls, and Mark Chapman supported him with 39, but it wasn’t enough in the end, as New Zealand suffered a crushing 48-run defeat. 

Abhishek, in the meantime, was adjudged the Player of the Match for his tremendous knock.