A very good team performance for us – Shubman Gill sums up India’s win against New Zealand

India pulled off a clinical win in Auckland, beating New Zealand in a rain-truncated battle to go 1-0 up in the ODI series. A phenomenal bowling performance saw the Men in Blue restrict New Zealand to just 185 runs. Despite losing Rohit Sharma early in the innings, India quickly reclaimed dominance through Virat Kohli and Shubman Gill.

Amongst the top performers for the Men in Blue, Virat Kohli led the charge with his bat, scoring 74 off just 51 balls while Arshdeep Singh, Gurnoor Brar and Anshul Kamboj were ruthless with the ball to leave the Kiwis stunned. Talking at the post-match presentation, Indian captain, Shubman Gill opened up on India’s overall performance while heaping praise on the individuals who shaped the fate of the game.

Reflecting on India’s dominant bowling, Gill said, “I think we were very good with the bowling. And I think our fielding was also really good. That run out by Rohit bhai, I think changed the momentum of the game. I think it was really that partnership (Mitchell & Phillips), we saw that even in India - those two batted really well in India. And overall I think a very good team performance for us.”

Heaping praise on Anshul Kamboj and Gurnoor Brar, Gill added, “I mean Anshul is the kind of a bowler, I think he's tailor-made for these kind of conditions, always nippy, trying to seam the ball. And good with the old ball. We felt when there's not much happening from the wicket, he (Brar) can create that extra bounce and with his pace and the way both of them bowled tonight was really magnificent to watch.”

Talking about adapting to conditions after the rain interruptions, Gill stated, “I mean it's never easy when you are set and then it rains and the wicket got a little bit quick, it got a little bit more nippy after the rain. So the target reduced. So we were just trying to play our normal cricket. And I think the way Virat bhai batted, it made things a lot more easy for us.”

He concluded by highlighting his plan for the next game in Wellington, stating, “Nothing really, if we are able to replicate our performance, it's all about consistency for us. If we are able to do the same thing over and over again, I think we'll be in a great space.”