While Glenn Maxwell scored a fiery 19-ball 41-run innings, James Neesham produced a match-winning performance (48* off 24 balls) for New Zealand against West Indies.
It was a good day with the bat for Kings XI Punjab duo Glenn Maxwell and James Neesham on Friday. While Maxwell played a fiery cameo for Australia against India in the first ODI of the series, Neesham produced a match-winning display against West Indies in the first of three T20Is.
In only 19 deliveries, Maxwell scored 45 runs, hitting three sixes and five fours. Neesham, meanwhile, hit as many sixes and fours for his unbeaten 48 off just 24 balls, as he helped New Zealand chase 176 runs in 16 overs (match cut short due to rain).
Interestingly, both the players performed poorly in the recently-concluded 2020 edition of the Indian Premier League for the KXIP. While Maxwell could score only 108 runs in 13 matches for the franchise, Neesham appeared in five matches, scoring 19 runs. With the ball, Neesham took two wickets, while Maxwell bowled 21 overs for his three wickets in the tournament.
And so, memes circulated on social media after they produced impressive performances on their return to international cricket. A fan also mentioned Neesham with one of the memes, where KL Rahul's face is imposed on the Pakistan fan who became famous for his reaction after a dropped catch during the 2019 World Cup.
Neesham, reacting to the meme, wrote, "Hahaha that’s actually pretty good @Gmaxi_32."
Maxwell, in turn, replied, "I apologised to him while I was batting #kxipfriends."
Earlier, India faced a 66-run defeat in the first ODI of the three-match series against Australia. Batting first, the Aussies put a mammoth total of 374/6 in 50 overs, thanks to centuries from Aaron Finch and Steve Smith.
In the chase, India were restricted to 308/8.
