Eden Park is one of the smallest cricket grounds in the world. The distorted dimensions down the ground make it an impossible ground to stop the flow of runs, yet that is exactly what India did on Sunday against New Zealand.
In the last 10 overs of the New Zealand innings, India conceded just 59 runs as the hosts ambled along to the third-lowest T20I total at the venue. The 132 for 5 the Kiwis managed is a total run-rate of 6.6 in the innings. To put things into perspective, the overall scoring rate at the venue is 8.73. In the seven matches at this venue since 2019, that rate is 9.87.
Read | Batsmen ace the Eden Park test while bowlers flunk
Guaranteed the wicket was slow and India too struggled until Shreyas Iyer altered the course of the game with a few handy strikes. But it was India's bowling exhibition that set up their second successive T20I win in New Zealand.
The template
India's T20I bowling has a set template to it these days that is hard to miss. Navdeep Saini and Mohammed Shami start off and set things up for Jasprit Bumrah who jogs in to nail a wicket or two or put the batsmen in their place in the powerplays. Bumrah is then taken off and Saini and Shami complete the powerplay overs.
With no Saini in these two matches, Shardul Thakur has been handed this task and when he came off unsuccessful, India stuck to their template with the other bowlers delivering.
Restraining Munro - Guptill
The innings started with Thakur being slightly all over the place, but Shami showed exactly what length to hit when he cramped Colin Munro for room and denied the good length that was clobbered the other night.
What Shami began, Bumrah carried on. He hit the in-between length that New Zealand batsmen could neither get on top of or slog down the line. In their last four associations, Martin Guptill and Colin Munro had gone at at least 10 runs per over.
After witnessing the hurricane last game, India were quick to adjust as they had the openers tied up even when they couldn't get a wicket. Ironically, it was Thakur who picked up the first wicket, a result of the pressure that was applied from the other end.
Where they choked the Kiwis
India's plan in the middle overs perhaps changed the course of this game. New Zealand had a decent foundation to build on and India countered that by Ravindra Jadeja, the pick of the bowlers. The left-arm spinner denied any room and was equally well supported by Yuzvendra Chahal's straighter ones and Shivam Dube's subtle change in pace.
It was in the middle overs where the Kiwis struggled to find any kind of momentum in the innings, at one point going 30-plus deliveries without a boundary. Jadeja's spell was critical to this and he showed exactly what he brings to the table in this format.
The future
With Saini expected to return, India's bowling attack - already intimidating - only becomes sharper. Saini has shown that he can adjust his length and pace to keep batsmen on their toes. Combined with Bumrah, Jadeja and Chahal, they are the bowling core of a fantastic attack in T20s with each of them bringing different skill sets to the table.
Feature image courtesy: AFP / David Rowland
