Rain played spoiler in Saturday’s encounter at Queens Sports Club, reducing the game to 37 overs per side after New Zealand batted first. The Kiwis stuttered from the outset, losing Hugo Bog for a golden duck at 5/1, followed by skipper Tom Jones (2) and a third wicket at 17/3 before showers arrived.

Post-interruption, disaster struck as they slumped to 22/5. Stand-in partnerships from Jaskaran Sandhu (with Jacob Coter for 37 runs) and Selwyn Sanjay-Kalem Samson (53 runs) pushed them to 135 in 36.2 overs. Samson remained not out on 37, Sanjay 28.

Bowling maestro RS Ambrish starred with 4/29, supported by Henil Patel’s 3/?. The rest chipped in to dismantle the innings efficiently.

Needing 130 via DLS, India lost Aaron George early (7), but captain Ayush Mhatre and Vaibhav Suryavanshi unleashed mayhem. Their 76-run stand in 39 balls featured Suryavanshi’s 40 (3×6, 2×4) off 23 and Mhatre’s unbeaten fireworks. With the score at 101/3, Vedant Trivedi and Vihaan Malhotra calmly knocked off the rest.

This victory propels India confidently into the Super Six stage, where the real tests begin. Fans are buzzing about the India-Pakistan showdown on February 1 – a match promising fireworks.