It’s strange. India have way bigger stars than the Kiwis, they have a much bigger T20 league and they have also won a T20 World Cup which the Kiwis haven’t (they haven’t even reached the finals in the six editions held so far).
But they’ve mananged to beat India on all five occasions they’ve played. It’s a fabulous record considering the T20 format is the least predictable. A single over, a couple of sixes and a breathtaking catch can all change the complexion of the game in minutes.
We take a jog down memory lane and see the biggest culprits for India, and the biggest heroes for New Zealand in all the five matches.
India vs New Zealand, Johannesburg (September 16, 2007)
The Kiwis batted first and hammered the likes S Sreesanth to register an imposing total of 190. In response India made a solid start, with both Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag going all guns blazing. But the attack fizzled out after Sehwag’s dismissal, and the Kiwis won by 10 runs.
India vs New Zealand, Chennai (September 11, 2012)
A match that will go down in the history books as a thrilling nailbiter, this match was won by New Zealand by a solitary run. A lot of people blamed MS Dhoni for decelerating India’s chase, especially with a lot of batting still to come.
New Zealand vs India, Christchurch (February 25, 2009)
This was a comfortable victory for New Zealand, and they won the game by seven wickets and seven balls to spare. Set a target of 163, the Kiwis lost their first wicket very early but then Brendon McCullum and Martin Guptill combined to get the home side a thumping victory.
New Zealand vs India, Wellington (February 27, 2009)
Another match that went right down to the wire, this game saw India post a modest target of 150 runs. That too was possible because of a quickfire half century from Yuvraj Singh. In response, not many Kiwi batsmen found their A-game but Brendon McCullum did. His 69 from 55 balls was enough to see his side secure a nail-biting victory.
India vs New Zealand, Nagpur (March 15, 2016)
Probably the worst performance by India among all the five T20Is, this match saw Mitchell Santner take 4 for 11 to take the Black Caps across the finish line. It was insane bowling, considering the match was in India and the visitors had only 126 runs to defend.
