T20 World Cup 2021: "The pitch was certainly slower than we saw" - Ish Sodhi on the surface used for the India-New Zealand clash
New Zealand leg-spinner Ish Sodhi believes that the surface at the Dubai International Stadium was much slower than what the team had anticipated. Even with the grass cover, the wicket was still a slow one as per the leggie.
Speaking about the wicket after India's innings, the crafty spinner pointed out that tonight's strip was slower when compared to the Australia-England clash. Notably, the same pitch was used for that particular fixture as well last night.
He added that getting to bowl first was crucial, considering that the chasing teams have had an advantage in Dubai. Here's what he said:
"The pitch was certainly slower than we saw. Looking at the wicket, there was a bit of grass cover on it, but it played slower than expected. Main tactic was bowling first. A lot of teams have had success here bowling first, especially in Dubai. So the toss was based on that opinion."
Birthday boy Ish Sodhi made a major impact in the encounter with his tidy spell. The 29-year-old conceded just 17 runs from his full quota of four overs while also dismissing team India's top batters Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
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India end up with a score of 110/7.
Will it prove to be enough?
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Kiwi bowlers overpower India's star-studded batting line-up
After being put in to bat first, the Indian batsmen failed to score runs at a frantic pace against New Zealand's disciplined bowling. The bowlers kept on picking up wickets at regular intervals to further dent India's chances of piling up an imposing total.
#StatChat | With his 3-20 in the first innings Trent Boult became the fifth BLACKCAPS bowler to take 50 T20I wickets. #T20WorldCup https://t.co/1HVaFZWOCT
New Zealand have claimed the upper hand in the contest by restricting India to a below-par total of 110. Ravindra Jadeja was the silver lining for Virat Kohli and co. with his unbeaten knock of 26. Trent Boult starred with the ball for the Kiwis by claiming three wickets.