Abhishek Sharma smashed a blistering 35-ball century as India defeated New Zealand by six wickets in the third T20 International in Wellington on Tuesday, securing an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series.
The Indian opener struck 113 off just 38 deliveries, including 11 sixes and nine fours, as the visitors chased down a target of 199 in 13.2 overs, with 40 balls to spare.
Sharma and 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi provided an explosive start, scoring 26 runs off the opening over bowled by Jacob Duffy. The pair added 17 runs in the second over and 21 in the third, taking India to 64 without loss after just three overs.
The onslaught continued as India scored 20, 16 and 18 runs in the next three overs to reach 118 without loss at the end of the Powerplay. Sharma raced to his half-century off just 15 balls.
New Zealand finally broke the opening partnership in the eighth over when Matthew Fisher dismissed Sooryavanshi for 45 off 19 deliveries, an innings featuring four sixes and four boundaries.
However, Sharma maintained the momentum, striking two sixes and a four in the same over as India reached 156/1 after eight overs.
After a relatively quiet ninth over, Sharma completed his century off just 35 balls in the 10th over against Kyle Jamieson.
The left-hander continued his aggressive approach before Jamieson eventually dismissed him for 113 off 38 balls.
India were 178/2 after 10 overs and firmly in control of the chase. Although Shreyas Iyer and Sanju Samson fell in the closing stages, the visitors completed the target in 13.2 overs to register a comfortable six-wicket victory.
New Zealand’s bowlers struggled to contain the Indian batters, with none conceding fewer than 12 runs per over. Jamieson claimed two wickets, while Fisher and captain Mitchell Santner picked up one each.
Earlier, Daryl Mitchell struck an impressive 89 off 52 deliveries as New Zealand posted 198/3 after being asked to bat first.
Mitchell received valuable support from Finn Allen, who scored 40 off 25 balls, and Bevon Jacobs, who contributed an unbeaten 39 off 23 deliveries.
New Zealand suffered an early setback when Arshdeep Singh dismissed opener Tim Seifert for two. However, Mitchell and Allen steadied the innings with an 86-run partnership for the second wicket.
While Mitchell played aggressively, Allen rotated the strike and struck five sixes during his innings before being dismissed by Nitish Kumar Reddy.
Glenn Phillips, playing his 100th T20 International, managed 17 runs before Axar Patel dismissed him in the 12th over.
Mitchell then joined forces with Jacobs, adding 75 runs for the fourth wicket to guide New Zealand towards a competitive total.
The hosts were 100/2 at the halfway stage, but India managed to restrict the scoring rate in the latter half of the innings, preventing New Zealand from crossing the 200-run mark.
For India, Arshdeep Singh, Axar Patel and Nitish Kumar Reddy claimed one wicket each, while veteran pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar went wicketless.
The victory gave India an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series, leaving New Zealand playing for pride in the remaining two encounters.
(ANI Inputs)
