A proper thrashing in the end and one that New Zealand aren't used to, certainly not at home. Expect them to bounce back hard in the next game. Hopefully, we get a much more competitive game of cricket. On that note, this is Hari Sadanandan signing off on behalf of Sagar Chawla and Siva. Cheers!
Hardik Pandya | India captain: Can't get any better than this. Everyone chipped it but it was surely a special innings by Surya. We would have taken a score of 170-175. Bowlers did well and it was about being aggressive in the mindset. It doesn't mean taking a wicket every ball, but being aggressive with the ball is important. The conditions were very wet, so credit to the bowlers. I have bowled a lot, going forward I want to see more bowling options. Not always that this will work but I want more batters to chip in with the ball. I expect them to be professional, which they are. Give them the opportunity to enjoy themselves. It's about creating an environment where they are all in a happy space. I see many times in this team that all the players are happy for each other's success. And that's important. I don't know (about changes for the next game). I'd like to give everyone in the squad a chance but it's just one more game, so it's a bit tough.
Kane Williamson | NZ skipper: It was not our best effort. Surya's innings was out of this world. One of the best knocks I've ever seen. Some of those shots, I've never seen before. They were outstanding, we weren't upto mark. We didn't get momentum with the ball, didn't get enough wickets and didn't get momentum with the bat either. It was frustrating. Again, I'll say about Suryakumar, his innings was the difference. It did swing a bit (in the chase) and India did well to get some swing. Important to look at those few areas and improve. Need to look at the small margins. Sometimes, a special innings can happen, Surya is the best player in the world.
Suryakumar Yadav | Player of the Match: The plan was clear when I went into bat. At the 12th/13th over, we thought about batting deep and getting around 170-175 was a par score. Secret (behind his freak shots) is about the intent and you need to enjoy yourself. It's also about the work you do in the practice sessions. It's a great feeling coming here, having a full game and going 1-0 in the series feels good. I feel that I didn't think too much about what was happening. Just had my gameplan and it worked well. Fantastic crowd here.
Strike rates today
Surya: 217.65 (111 off 51)
Rest of India batters: 100.00 (69 off 69)
NZ batters: 104.42 (118 off 113)
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