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The visiting players from New Zealand continuing to perform well in India are here to stay. While playing gully cricket in New Delhi, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon of New Zealand demonstrated his cricket prowess. At a special event on the streets of the capital city, PM Luxon was joined by former India captain Kapil Dev, and the two of them stole the show as they played with children. Young bystanders gazed in wonder as the cricket-loving Prime Minister and the three cricketers delighted them. Former New Zealand batter Ross Taylor and left-arm spinner Ajaz Patel also joined in the fun.
PM Luxon was eager to show off his strength and make some big shots. The 54-year-old leader demonstrated his quick reflexes after stepping down the field and making a few strokes. PM Luxon fielded in an unusual position and made a brilliant catch, catching Ajaz Patel at leg-slip.
"This is unbelievable. I am playing cricket with Kapil Dev on the streets of New Delhi with some amazing kids," PM Luxon said in a video he shared on Instagram, where he could be seen playing with Kapil Dev, Ross Taylor and Ajaz Patel.
"I thought I would glance it down the leg side, and I forgot that the PM was standing there. He pouched it. It was unbelievable. It was a good catch," Ajaz said, lauding PM Luxon's effort.
"He's got it. It's a good catch," Ross Taylor added.
During their visit to Delhi last week, the Prime Minister of New Zealand and Prime Minister Narendra Modi engaged in some lighthearted cricket banter. Luxon's joke that he had purposefully avoided talking about cricket to avoid a "diplomatic incident," considering how the men's teams of the two countries have been slugging it out in recent major tournaments, pleasantly surprised PM Modi.
"I really appreciate that PM Modi didn't bring up New Zealand's Champions Trophy loss to India, and I didn't mention our Test victories in India. Let's keep it that way and avoid a diplomatic incident," Luxon joked, drawing cheers from the room.
Notably, on March 9, India won the Champions Trophy final in Dubai over New Zealand. Given that New Zealand had defeated them 3-0 in a home Test series, the victory was especially sweet for the Men in Blue.
