India skipper Shreyas Iyer said that the Men in Blue fell short in their bowling performance against New Zealand in the 4th T20I on Friday. New Zealand won by 87 runs in Auckland. "I think we fell a bit short in our bowling to start with," Iyer said after.
India skipper Shreyas Iyer on Friday said that the Men in Blue fell short in their bowling performance against New Zealand in the 4th T20I, which proved costly as the hosts avoided a whitewash with an 87-run win in Auckland.
"I think we fell a bit short in our bowling to start with. Powerplay, especially in the third over, they got that momentum from there on, and yeah, a couple of bowlers tried to squeeze in, but I think exceptional knock by Glenn. Some phenomenal shots, which were like pure bliss. So kudos to him. He's been consistent throughout the series, so a lot to learn from him," Iyer said in the post-match presentation ceremony.
"I personally feel that we can probably go back to the drawing board and see to it we analyse and try to execute to the best of our abilities in the next game," he added.
Iyer also acknowledged that some India bowlers were playing at the Eden Park for the first time, which could have been tricky for them due to it being one of the smallest T20 grounds with awkward dimensions.
"We knew the dimensions were going to be like this. First time for some of them. Not easy to adapt. The way they executed in the first three games was magnificent. Great learning curve," he said.
Jacob Duffy rattled India with a four-wicket burst to complement Phillips' explosive century as New Zealand defeated the visitors. India were given a taste of their own medicine as Phillips smashed a sensational 107 off 49 balls (6×4, 10×6) to power New Zealand to a mammoth 259/7, the highest T20I total against India by any team.
For India, Mayank Yadav (3/48) was the most successful bowler, while Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav, Axar Patel and Nitish Kumar Reddy claimed a wicket each. India's chase went horribly wrong as Duffy (4/23) struck twice in the opening over, dismissing Sanju Samson (4) and Ishan Kishan (0).
The chase derailed further in the middle overs as Duffy broke a brief recovery by dismissing Naman Dhir (28) and Arshdeep Singh (0) off successive deliveries to virtually seal the match.