IND Vs NZ 3rd ODI Highlights: India had displayed a poor show with the bat in the must-win game against New Zealand in the third and final one-day international match at Hagley Oval in Christchurch.

Team India was already trailing behind by a margin of 1-0 because they lost the first ODI match, which was played at Eden Park in Auckland on Friday, 25th November 2022.

India never had the momentum in the third ODI

The Blues had played 190 dot balls in this innings, and the visitors had no momentum. The Kiwis were right on the money from the first delivery after they won the toss and opted to bowl first.

The Indian openers failed to provide a decent start, and the middle order continued their poor form. 

Shubman Gill, the man in form, was the first to depart for 13 runs. Gill had a slow start to the innings, and he didn't look comfortable at the crease till the time he batted.

Skipper Dhawan looked good for his 28 runs. But he only did a little after guiding the team's score to 55 runs.

Iyer and Washington have been biggest positives for India in this series

Shreyas Iyer has been a big positive for the men in blue in this series. Iyer even slammed a half-century in the first ODI, and he looked good here.

Iyer has batted like a pillar for Team India in the absence of Virat Kohli at the number three batting position and has been a leading run scorer for India in this three-match series.

Shreyas has scored 129 runs in two ODI matches played in this series. He is a big positive for India, especially when the ODI World Cup 2023 is around the corner. 

Washington Sundar‘s batting was another positive for India in the two matches. Washi scored a quickfire 36 runs in the first one-day international match at Auckland, and here he guided the team from a tricky situation to a modest score of 219.

The men in the blue side didn't look like they would surpass the two-hundred-run mark at one stage. 

Sundar scored his first half-century in the one-day international format for India and was the top scorer for the team with 51 runs. Shreyas scored 49 runs and looked good for more.

But most of the Indian batters were out due to the poor shot selection, and their approach was also questionable, especially when they haven't got a decent start. India lost wickets at regular intervals.

Pant and SKY disappoint yet again

Rishabh Pant and Suryakumar Yadav haven't stepped up, which is a worrying sign for the visiting team. Pant was given another chance.

But the vice-captain didn’t use this chance and was out for another low score. Pant was out for just ten runs in this third ODI. 

Suryakumar Yadav batted well in the second ODI, which was washed out due to the rains. In the third match, he, too, didn't do anything special like he had done for India in the shortest format.

India needs their middle order to step up in an event like the ICC Cricket World Cup, and for that, SKY and Pant need to use their limited opportunities.

Kiwis did well with the ball

New Zealand used the overcast conditions very well. The pacers ripped the Indian batters apart with some excellent spells. The Kiwis were also good with their lines and lengths, which never allowed the Indian batters to keep going hard at them.

Daryl Mitchell was the pick of the bowlers. The Kiwi all-rounder picked up his career-best figures in ODI cricket. 

Mitchell picked up three wickets for 25 runs, and Adam Milne also got three Indian scalps, while Southee got two wickets, with Santner and Lockie Ferguson picking up one wicket each.

New Zealand openers get off to a solid start

Defending just 220 runs is difficult, especially when the opposition side is like New Zealand. The Kiwis had chased down 307 runs with complete ease in the first ODI and won that match by seven wickets and almost three overs to spare.

The Indian bowlers did get some help from the pitch. Arshdeep Singh got the ball to move. But Finn Allen and Devon Conway handled the situation quite brilliantly. 

Allen and Conway had negotiated some quiet overs. But once they were settled, the Kiwi openers never looked back, and they shared a 97 runs partnership which helped the home side to be in this contest.

Umran Malik was the one who gave India a much-needed breakthrough, as Finn Allen was out after reaching his fourth ODI half-century. 

While New Zealand's innings were going nicely, the rains halted the game. The Kiwis were in complete control of the match. They had scored 104 runs with the loss of just one wicket.

New Zealand wanted to win the series by a 2-0 margin. But there was another wash out, and the match was abandoned due to the rains. The home side wins the series by a 1-0 margin.