IND vs NZ, 1st ODI: Was it a bird? was it a plane? no, not at all, it was Washington Sundar working the ball in different parts of the ground and into the stands. India are gearing up for the ODI World Cup that will be played next year and they are in the process to identify their probable options and also a proper eleven that will go for glory next year. The preparations for this have already begun. India are taking on New Zealand and this will certainly be a stern test for the men in blue on their path to the marquee tournament.
India batted first and they were en route to a huge total courtesy of a 10-run stand between Shikhar Dhawan and Shubman Gill. For the majority of the Indian innings, the Kiwis led by Kane Williamson looked clueless and begging for answers. Once they removed both Dhawan and Gill, the Kiwis tried to control the game. Pant and SKY departed without making any impact. Iyer was later joined in by Sanju Samson and they steadied Indias's ship. It was last-minute heroics by Washington Sundar that propelled India's score to 306 at the end of 50 overs.
Washington came out all guns blazing and the Kiwi bowlers were left shocked. At a strike rate of 231.25, Sundar hit 3 fours, 3 sixes and raced off to 37* from 16 deliveries. The Tamil Nadu-based all-rounder has returned to the Indian team after a long gap and going forward he'll like to cement his place in the Indian National team.
Here is how Twitter reacted:
New Zealand: Finn Allen, Devon Conway, Kane Williamson (c), Tom Latham (wk), Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Adam Milne, Matt Henry, Tim Southee, Lockie Ferguson
India: Shikhar Dhawan (c), Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant (wk), Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Sanju Samson, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Umran Malik, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal
