Team India suffered a disappointing loss against New Zealand in the first ODI on Friday, November 25 at Eden Park in Auckland. They lost the match by seven wickets, as the hosts comfortably chased down the target. Former India head coach Ravi Shastri feels Team India needs to seriously think about its bowling combination ahead of the second ODI match.
The Shikhar Dhawan-led team went in with five bowlers at Eden Park for the first ODI against New Zealand. The five bowlers included two debutants, Arshdeep Singh and Umran Malik, while the likes of Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, and Yuzvendra Chahal were the other three options. Team India’s bowling attack struggled to make an impact.
Defending 307 runs, they picked up three wickets for 88 runs in around 20 overs. However, New Zealand Kane Williamson and Tom Latham put together a stunning partnership for the fourth wicket. The Indian bowlers could not stand Latham’s batting assault, as the wicket-keeper batter slammed nineteen boundaries and five sixes. Williamson and Latham’s partnership took New Zealand home comfortably.
Speaking post-match for Prime Video, former cricketer Anjum Chopra asked if India missed a sixth bowling option in the match. She said,
“In hindsight, now that the game is over when you look back at the start of the match, you look at the team from both the side, would you have had another bowler, a sixth-bowling option, in this Indian line-up?”
Shastri replied saying, “I think seriously they will have to think of it. They will have to think of it.”
India will take on New Zealand in the second ODI on Sunday, November 27
Team India will take on New Zealand in the second ODI of the three-match series on Sunday, November 27 at Seddon Park in Hamilton. They will be keen to level the series, after a disappointing loss in the first game. The team is likely to make some changes for the upcoming game. As Ravi Shastri expressed, that might go in with an extra bowling option. The likes of Deepak Chahar, Deepak Hooda, and, Kuldeep Yadav were on the bench for the first game.
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