Flashback: India vs New Zealand 2019: What happened when the two teams met in 2014

After having a successful tour in Australia, India now move to their neighboring country New Zealand for a limited overs series. The Blackcaps will host India for a five-match ODI series which will be followed by a three-match T20I series.

Winning against the Blackcaps will be a hard task as the Kiwis are a strong white-ball outfit. New Zealand is in great form in their home conditions. According to the ICC ODI Rankings, India are No.2 and New Zealand is No.3, so one thing is for sure that this is going to be a cracker of a series. The Australian series might just be the starter as we get ready for the main course. India is visiting New Zealand after five years.

They last visited way back in 2014 when they played a five-match ODI series and a two-match Test series. It wasn’t a great tour as India lost in both the formats. In the ODIs, India was defeated 4-0 whereas the scoreline read 1-0 for the Tests. As we get ready for the current series, let’s go into the flashback and revisit the five ODIs which took place in 2014.

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#1 1st ODI - India lose the series opener at Napier

1st ODI

India won the toss and chose to bowl in the first ODI at Napier. India started well by taking two quick wickets but later on New Zealand piled on the runs as they reached 292-7 with the help of half-centuries by Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor, and Corey Anderson.

Shami was the pick of the bowlers as he picked up four wickets out of the seven. Chasing 293, India lost Rohit Sharma pretty early. Dhawan and Kohli built a 50 run partnership before Dhawan got out while hooking a Corey Anderson bouncer. After the fall of Raina, Dhoni joined hands with Virat Kohli for a 95 run partnership and it seemed like these two might take India home.

Virat Kohli even reached to his 18th ODI hundred in the meantime but the wicket of Dhoni changed it all. Dhoni got out at the wrong time as India collapsed after the fall of his wicket. India was bowled out 268 as they didn’t even bat the 50 overs. This was the first time India lost after Kohli had scored a century while chasing. Corey Anderson’s Man of the Match effort helped NZ take a 1-0 lead in the five-match series.

#2 2nd ODI - NZ strengthen their lead with another win

2nd ODI

Once again India won the toss and opted to bowl in the second ODI at Hamilton. Batting first, NZ lost Ryder pretty early but Williamson and Guptill put on a partnership of 89 for the second wicket.

Once again there were fifties from Williamson and Taylor. Rain arrived in the middle of the first innings and the overs were reduced to 42. Corey Anderson’s 17 ball 44 helped the Kiwis reach the total of 271-7. India had to chase 297 in the allotted 42 overs.

The openers didn’t do much damage as India were two down with just 37 runs on the board. Kohli and Rahane stabled the innings as they put on 90 runs for the third wicket. After Kohli fell for 78, Dhoni and Raina had a quick 62 run partnership which bought India close to the target.

India needed 40 runs off the last three overs but they lost the wickets of Dhoni and Jadeja in the same over which turned the game. Eventually India lost the game by 15 runs and as a result, New Zealand had taken a 2-0 lead in the series.

#3 3rd ODI - India keep the series alive with a tie

A thrilling tie

MS Dhoni won the toss for the third consecutive time and again chose to bowl first, this time in Auckland. Martin Guptill along with Kane Williamson was involved in a 153 run partnership for the second wicket. Martin Guptill bought up his fifth ODI hundred as NZ put a huge total of 314 on the board. India had to score 315 if they wanted to remain in the series.

This time the openers started well with 64 run partnership. But India’s chase was dented when the lost four wickets in nine overs. MS Dhoni and R Ashwin scored crucial fifties that bought the game close. After the fall of Ashwin’s wicket, India needed 44 runs off the last five overs.

Jadeja along with the bowlers bought down the equation to 18 off the last over with just one wicket in hand. Jadeja smashed a few boundaries as India needed two off the last ball. Jadeja took a single off the last ball which ended the game in a tie. Ravindra Jadeja was given the Man of the Match award for his heroics which kept the series alive for India.

#4 4th ODI – NZ win the series at Hamilton

Ind lost the match as well as series

For the fourth successive time India won the series but this time India choose to bat first. Kohli opened the innings in Dhawan’s absence but didn’t make any impact. India reached the total of 278-5 with the help of half-centuries from Rohit Sharma, MS Dhoni, and Ravindra Jadeja.

It seemed to be a par score at the half-way stage. Chasing 279, the NZ openers departed after putting up a fifty run partnership. A 130 run partnership between Taylor and Williamson set the game nicely for NZ. Taylor carried on after the loss of Williamson and bought up his ninth ODI ton.

He was well supported by their skipper Brendon McCullum who scored 49 off just 36 balls. NZ chased down the score with seven wickets in hand and nine balls to spare. This win meant that New Zealand won the series and India would just play for pride in the last game.

#5 5th ODI – India don’t win a single match in the whole series

Fifth and final ODI

For the fifth time in the series, MS won the toss and this time opted to bowl first in final ODI at Wellington. New Zealand’s openers didn’t fire but once again it was the famous Taylor-Williamson partnership which troubled India.

They put on another 150+ partnership as Williamson scored 88 and Taylor scored back to back tons. Some finishing touches helped NZ reach the total of 303-5 which seemed out of India’s reach. India was never in the game as they lost four wickets for 78. Kohli (82 off 78) and Dhoni (47 off 72) tried for a while but the target was too far.

India got bundled out for 216 in the last over of the match. Matt Henry picked up four wickets for just 38 runs. With this defeat, NZ won the series 4-0 and India remained winless in the whole series. It was a disappointing series for India as they couldn’t win a single game even after winning all the five tosses. Indian fans will be hoping that they have a different result this year as we get ready for some exciting cricket!