New Delhi [India]: It was a befitting farewell for veteran speedster Ashish Nehra as India established their first T20I win against New Zealand by defending their total by 53 runs here at the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium.
It was an emotional moment for the Indian brigade after the match as Ashish Nehra ended his 18-year-long international career here at his home ground.
Asked to bat first, the Men in Blue set a mammoth target of 203 at the end of 20 overs for the Kiwis.
Openers Rohit Sharma (80) and Shikhar Dhawan (80) had a158 run partnership in this game, the biggest stand in T20Is for India.
The previous highest stand for them was 138 between Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli against South Africa in Dharamsala in 2015.
New Zealand gave enough chances to India as they dropped three catches of Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli (26), the three later played their respective roles and added runs for India.
Chasing the big target, Tom Latham gave his efforts but couldn’t carry the team forward in chase of 53 runs. He scored 39, before was stumped by Yuzvendra Chahal.
Following him, Kane Williamson (28) too got a decent start but couldn’t convert it into a big score.
Meanwhile, the spinners Yuzvendra Chahal and Axar Patel picked up two wickets each but sadly, Nehra couldn’t get his last precious wicket.
Shikhar Dhawan was named the Man of the Match for his 80 off 52 balls. (ANI)