IND vs NZ: New Zealand tour ends in disappointment as Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli fall cheaply in 5th ODI

New Zealand couldn’t have asked for a better start to the fifth and final ODI against India at the Bay Oval after winning the toss and sending the visitors in to bat first. Beaming with confidence following a massive 244-run win in the fourth ODI, New Zealand struck gold early in Sunday’s fixture by sending the talismanic pair of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli back cheaply, before removing Ruturaj Gaikwad to reduce India to 34/3 inside the Powerplay. While Rohit fell for just seven, ending this series with just 30 runs in four innings, Kohli too departed for five, registering a mere 86 runs on his last New Zealand tour.

While there was no Matt Henry to trouble the Indians at the beginning, as he did in the fourth ODI with his career-best figures (6/27), Matthew Fisher accounted for the star pair in the fifth One-Dayer. Moreover, just when it looked like India had learned from their last game’s mistakes following a decent start, the top order crumbled, with Jacob Duffy removing Gaikwad to make things worse for the Men in Blue.

Also read| U19 Asia Cup Final: India clinch 9th title after thrilling last-ball win over Pakistan

Rohit and Gaikwad began cautiously, before the new-ball pair mounted pressure on the Indian openers with tighter lines. That yielded results as Rohit was found wanting off a good-length delivery, which he flicked to short mid-wicket off Fisher for just seven. Fisher, who impressed in the previous ODI with his three-wicket haul, then picked up the big fish in Kohli, who fell for another single-digit score (5) in this ODI series, his third in the last three innings.

Gaikwad’s dismissal for 18 followed just four balls later after he edged one to Tim Seifert off Duffy to leave India in a similar situation - one that head coach Gautam Gambhir had raised concerns about after the fourth ODI shocker.

Meanwhile, earlier at the toss, stand-in captain Shreyas Iyer announced two changes in the playing XI for the final match, handing an ODI debut cap to seamer Yash Thakur and including seasoned quick Mohammed Siraj for Gurnoor Brar.

Team India leads this five-match series 2-1.