As the Indian unit faltered in the all-important T20 World Cup contest against New Zealand, it added an unwanted batting record to its name. Regular wickets after being put in to bat led to India's slump in Dubai against the Kiwis, who tightened their noose around the Virat Kohli-led camp as the match progressed.
The Indian team managed to hit just a single four or six in 70 deliveries against the BlackCaps. Skipper Virat Kohli, who scored 9 off 17 deliveries, perished without scoring a single boundary as the Kiwi bowlers kept packing Indian batters.
India were struggling to hit a boundary since the first delivery of the sixth over. All-rounder Hardik Pandya broke the shackles by hitting a boundary off Trent Boult in the 17th over.
Kiwi spinners have great day at work
It wast the first instance in the ongoing T20 World Cup where a side has not hit a boundary between overs 7 and 15. New Zealand spinners also had a great day at work as they didn't concede a single boundary. The last time when India didn't hit a single boundary in middle overs in a T20I (7-16) was in 2016 against the same opposition in Nagpur.
Ishan Kishan (4 from 8 deliveries) departed cheaply and KL Rahul (18 off 16 balls) also walked back, leaving India 35/2 at the stroke of Powerplay. Rohit Sharma, who has averaged just 21 this year, also walked back for 14 to make life difficult for India.
Ravindra Jadeja top-scored for India with 18-ball 25* while Hardik Pandya (23) and Rishabh Pant (12) chipped in with vital cameos to help the side notch up 110 runs on the board. It's the lowest total in T20Is for India while batting first.
On the bowling front, Trent Boult picked up three while Ish Sodhi added two wickets to his name. Tim Southee and Adam Milne also added a wicket each under their belt.
