India vs New Zealand, 5th T20I, New Zealand tour of India, 2026 - Commentary

New Zealand sealed the three-match ODI series 2-1, but in the shortest format, it was India who firmly stamped their authority. Daryl Mitchell was central to New Zealand’s success in the ODIs, however, he couldn’t quite reproduce those heroics against the reigning T20 world champions. India, meanwhile, ticked plenty of boxes. Abhishek Sharma provided brisk starts more often than not, Ishan Kishan played a few breathtaking knocks, while Suryakumar Yadav rediscovered his touch at just the right moment - on the eve of the T20 World Cup. With the ball, things looked far more settled as both the pacers and spinners chipped in with regular wickets. Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube further proved their value with impactful all-round performances. All in all, India appear a well-oiled unit and the defending champions will be eager to carry this momentum into the T20 World Cup. It’s been a pleasure bringing you live coverage of these five T20Is. Hope you enjoyed it as much as we did. For now, this is Nikhil signing off on behalf of Akshay and Siva. Goodbye, and good night!

Suryakumar Yadav - the Player of the Series and India’s captain, lifts the trophy before passing it around to his teammates. The BCCI support staff join in as the squad pose with the winners’ hoarding, while head coach Gautam Gambhir looks calm and composed - hopeful this young group can carry these performances forward..

Suryakumar Yadav | Player of the Series: It feels really good. It’s been a long year and a long wait for moments like this. I’ve always dreamed about when this time would come. You (Murali Kartik) actually said it before the last series in Ahmedabad - when SKY is there, don’t fear. I just kept doing the same things I’d been doing over the last year, stuck to my routines. I knew I wasn’t out of form, just out of runs. It’s been a very good series, and going into the World Cup feeling like this is really special. (what was going through his mind) I think the sky wasn’t blue for a year, (smiles). But that’s life. It’s part of the journey. I took it in my stride, went back to the drawing board, tried to understand what was going wrong. After the last series, I got two or three weeks where I spent time with close friends - they told me a few important things I needed to follow. That’s a sportsperson’s life. I’ve seen so many careers - not just in cricket - where people go through these phases. I knew my time would come if I kept doing the small things right. I’m really happy with how things have turned out. (is he happy with how things are shaping up) Definitely. Whether you win or lose, you always take something from the game. When we go back to Mumbai and play a warm-up game against South Africa, we’ll sit down and analyse the last five games and the year as a whole - what we’ve done well and what we can improve. Then we start our campaign. (New Zealand didn't give up) This format is really hard on bowlers - I completely understand that. When you score big runs, you have to expect the opposition to come hard at you. As a captain and as a bowling unit, you’re always under pressure. The key is having good plans. It’s all part of the learning process. We’ll sit down, talk it through, and move forward.

Ishan Kishan | Player of the Match: (immediate thoughts on his knock) Honestly, not much. I felt the ball was doing a bit early on, but batting alongside Abhishek Sharma really helps. You see his intent, you understand the momentum the team needs, and then you just try to watch the ball and play accordingly. That approach worked well for me today. (not worrying about personal milestones) I think that’s the mindset of everyone in our team now. Even if you’re close to a milestone, it doesn’t really matter. If you start taking singles at that stage, you might feel later that you missed an opportunity to go big. So if the ball is there to hit, you have to go for it. The focus is on winning matches, not personal milestones. (how satisfying is it) I still feel I’m not there yet. Yes, I’ve done well and I’m getting these awards, but my focus is firmly on the World Cup. That’s where the extra effort is needed. What’s important is carrying this form forward and continuing to contribute there.

Mitchell Santner: Yeah, I think when you look at the series as a whole, we’ve taken a lot of positives. India are a very good team - I said that right at the start - and in their own conditions they’re extremely tough to beat. Maybe we push the ropes back a little for the bowlers (laughs), but overall, it’s entertaining cricket at the end of the day. (did they manage to tick off a few boxes) I think when you’re challenged throughout a series, that’s always a good thing. You put both your bowlers and batters under pressure, and you can only learn from that. From that point of view, it’s been a really good series for us. Obviously, the results haven’t gone our way, but there are learnings from every single game. (what are the learning with the World Cup coming up) It’s not easy. As a bowling unit, we’ve got to find ways against very good batters - guys who deal in boundaries and sixes. Maybe it’s about turning those big overs into 15 or 16, especially on flat pitches, knowing that even 230 can be chaseable.

Sixth Player of the Series award for Suryakumar Yadav - joint second most for a player in T20Is alongside Wanindu Hasaranga. Only Virat Kohli has more (7).

Most sixes in a T20I
41 Bulgaria vs Gibraltar Sofia 2025
36 Ind vs NZ Trivandrum 2026 *
35 WI vs SA Centurion 2023
34 WI vs Eng St George’s 2023

Highest match aggregate in a T20I
517 WI vs SA Centurion 2023
496 Ind vs NZ Trivandrum 2026 *
489 WI vs Ind Lauderhill 2016

Most expensive 5-fers in T20Is
5/51 Arshdeep Singh vs NZ Trivandrum 2026
5/40 Alzarri Joseph vs SA Joburg 2023
5/39 Lungi Ngidi vs Eng Bristol 2022

Arshdeep Singh: Yep, it was a great learning for me as well - to stay in the game and not think about what happened in the past or in the first spell. That was the message from the coaching staff. I just wanted to stay in the present and do what was right in front of me. (how does he stay calm) It’s just for the camera that I look calm - I’m definitely feeling the pressure as well. Lately, I’ve been going for quite a few runs, so I’m just trying to work that out with Morne and give my best for the team. I enjoyed some of the shots Finn played. But yes, I guess we could have planned a little better according to the wicket. Chasing 250-plus, they were always going to come hard. We could have executed a bit better, but the plan was to stay in the present and just enjoy it. (what was said by SKY during the huddle after the powerplay) There’s no secret there. The talk was about body language - about giving it our all and giving ourselves the best chance to restrict them to around 180 or 190. They played really well and scored a lot of runs, but we’re happy to be on the winning side. (does the team know where they stand before the World Cup) Yes, pretty happy with everyone performing well individually. But a perfect team game hasn’t come yet - we haven’t clicked in all departments at the same time. That’s a good sign too, because hopefully in the World Cup, all three phases of the game can come together and we can have a perfect game.

22:30 Local Time, 17:00 GMT, 22:30 IST: India clinch the series 4-1 in an emphatic fashion with a thoroughly dominant performance in the five-match T20I series. A class apart throughout, the hosts have capped it off with another clinical win. After winning the toss, India opted to bat and barring Sanju Samson’s continued struggles at the top, everything fell into place. Abhishek Sharma provided early impetus, before Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav took complete control with a scintillating partnership. The Indian skipper brought up a brisk half-century, while Kishan went a step further, compiling a breathtaking hundred. A late cameo from Hardik Pandya ensured the momentum never dipped as India piled up a colossal 271. Chasing such a daunting target was always going to be a stiff challenge for New Zealand. Finn Allen gave them hope with a blistering start, smashing 80 off just 38 balls, but once he departed, the chase lost steam. India struck at regular intervals thereafter, never allowing the visitors to build any momentum - similar to the earlier matches of this series. Arshdeep Singh starred with the ball, picking up a five-wicket haul, while Axar Patel chipped in with three as India sealed a comprehensive 46-run victory. It was a complete and an all-round team performance from the Men in Blue. Stay around for the presentations..

Rinku Singh to Ish Sodhi, THATS OUT!! Caught!!