India on Wednesday defeated New Zealand by six wickets in the third one-day international (ODI) at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium here.
After Indian bowlers kept New Zealand to 230, half-centuries from Shikhar Dhawan and Dinesh Karthik help the hosts to secure a win. With this victory win, India levelled the three-match ODI series.
It was a big game for Karthik who was promoted to spot 4. His unbeaten 64-run innings should please the team management. Former captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni also remained unbeaten at 18.
Dhawan scored 68 runs in 84 balls. Captain Virat Kohli (29) and Hardik Pandya (30) were other top scorers from the Indian side.
New Zealand bowlers Tim Southee, Adam Milne, Mitchell Santner, and Colin de Grandhomme claimed one wicket each.
Earlier, New Zealand won the toss and asked India to bowl first in the penultimate second ODI of the three-match series.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar led the clinical show with a three-wicket haul, while Jasprit Bumrah and Yuzvendra Chahal claimed two wickets each. Hardik Pandya and Axar Patel took one wicket each.
Not a single New Zealand batsman was able to score fifty despite eight of them registering double-digit scores. Henry Nicholls was the highest scorer with 42 runs.
New Zealand decided to go with the unchanged side that clinched a six-wicket win in the opening match at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
The match also grabbed headlines for all the wrong reasons.
Prior to the match, pitch curator Pandurang Salgaoncar was banned by Mumbai Cricket Association president Abhay Apte after he was found to be giving inside information to the reporters, disguised as bookies.
In a sting operation done by a leading news production house, Salgaonkar was caught on camera revealing that the pitch will be made according to their ('bookies') demands.
According to the BCCI and the International Cricket Council (ICC), rules state that no one - other than the officials - can come inside the stadium or inspect the pitch for that matter.
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