Arshdeep Singh Equals Tim Southee in T20 Powerplay Wickets

India pacer Arshdeep Singh has reached a notable mark in T20 cricket by equalling former New Zealand bowler Tim Southee's record for powerplay wickets. The milestone came in the fifth T20 between India and New Zealand at Seddon Park in Hamilton.

Arshdeep's dismissal of Finn Allen brought up his 65th T20 wicket in the powerplay. Overs one to six are the powerplay, and his tally now stands level with Southee at the top among full member nations.

Muzarabani of Zimbabwe is in third place with 62 powerplay wickets, underlining how rare this level of consistency is in the shortest format.

Winning the toss, New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner asked India to bat. The hosts' seamers struck early. Milne sent back Abhishek Sharma for one in the second over and Sanju Samson for four in the fourth.

Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer then stabilised India's innings, adding 93 runs in only 43 balls for the third wicket. Ishan produced a fierce knock of 61 from 32 balls, hitting five fours and five sixes. Iyer completed a 22-ball fifty and ended on 50.

Naman Dhir contributed a useful 33 off 23 balls, including four fours and a six. Nitish Kumar Reddy made 22 off 17 balls, while Bhuvneshwar Kumar was out for six. Milne was New Zealand's most successful bowler with 4 for 19, while Nathan Smith and Blair Tickner took two wickets each.