India’s stand-in captain Shreyas Iyer admitted that New Zealand’s bowling made the difference after the visitors suffered a humiliating 244-run defeat in the fourth ODI at Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui, on Friday.Chasing 334, India were bowled out for just 89 in 28.4 overs, with Matt Henry producing a sensational six-wicket haul to dismantle the batting order. The defeat reduced India’s lead in the five-match series to 2-1, with the third ODI having been washed out.Speaking after the match, Iyer acknowledged the impact of Henry’s opening spell and credited the New Zealand pacer for consistently bowling in the right areas.“We saw it, there was a huge difference in the first innings and the second innings in terms of wicket, but also credit where it’s due, the way Henry bowled in the right areas right from ball one. I think that was sensational,” Iyer said.
Iyer defends India’s batting performance
India’s batting collapse began in the opening over when Henry dismissed Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer, leaving the visitors reeling at 0/3. Iyer admitted that India had tried different bowling strategies during New Zealand’s innings but struggled to contain the hosts. He also pointed to missed opportunities in the field, while acknowledging that the team expected to chase the target comfortably after watching New Zealand score 333.“I think we tried almost everything in the first innings, the way they were playing on the rise. And we thought that the wicket was better to bat on considering they got 330 after that. Obviously a couple of dropped catches, but that definitely happens in a game,” he said.The Indian captain also defended his batters, insisting that they were dismissed by quality deliveries rather than throwing their wickets away.
Will India bounce back in the fifth ODI after this defeat?
3k+ users shared opinion today
5k+ users already voted today
3k+ users shared opinion today
“But yeah, when we got into the dressing room, we thought that we would be cruising through the chase as well. But the way the ball was seaming in and out, you couldn’t basically decide from inside that this is how I’m going to play. Or even if you saw the wickets, no one threw the wicket away. It was good deliveries,” Iyer added.
Shreyas Iyer urges India to move on
Despite the heavy defeat, Iyer reminded his teammates that India had won the first two matches and urged them to take confidence from those performances ahead of the series decider.“It’s important to forget about this one, obviously, analyze what went wrong in terms of bowling and batting. But at the back of the mind it’s important that we have also won two games. So a lot of inspiration from that one and see to it that we come with a fresh set of mind,” he said.New Zealand had earlier posted 333, powered by Will Young‘s 125 off 108 balls. Tim Seifert contributed 58, while Finn Allen scored 41. Henry then led the bowling effort with six wickets as India suffered one of their heaviest defeats in ODI cricket.The fifth and final ODI will be played at the same venue on November 15, with India aiming to secure the series and New Zealand looking to level it.
