Virat Kohli and Kane Williamson
India defeated New Zealand 5-0 on Sunday to become the first team ever to win a bilateral T20I series comprising five matches. The whitewash came with India's seven-run win in the fifth and final tie at the Bay Oval Stadium in Mount Maunganui. After the sensational series win, Virat Kohli was full of praise for New Zealand captain Kane Williamson, saying that New Zealand cricket is in the best hands despite the scoreline.
"Kane and me have similar mindsets, similar philosophies. It is amazing that despite being from different parts of the world, we have similar thinking and we speak the same language. Despite what the scoreline suggests, I feel that New Zealand cricket is in the best hands and he is the right guy to lead this team. He is the perfect, perfect man to lead them. I wish him the best of luck and power to lead this side in the future. They are a side everyone loves to watch and play against," said Kohli in the post-match presentation.
Talking about the match, the Indian pacers, led by ever-reliable Jasprit Bumrah, shared seven wickets among them for 25 runs in match-changing 7.2 overs to restrict the Kiwis to 156 for nine while defending 163 for three. Bumrah conceded just 12 runs in his four overs and got rid of three batsmen, bowling block-hole deliveries during death overs. India's total was built around stand-in skipper Rohit Sharma' 60-run knock after they elected to bat.
"All of us are really proud of the way we've played this series. I think the conversation we had was to always look to find ways to win. When it comes out, it feels nice. You don't want to see what happened to Rohit, but there were all these young guys playing well and handling the pressure. That gives me a lot of pleasure watching from the outside and they will take this momentum going forward for many years," added Kohli.
(With PTI inputs)
