IND vs NZ 2023: Hits and flops as India edge past the Kiwis in a low-scoring thriller in Lucknow 

In what was a low-scoring encounter, Team India managed to edge past New Zealand by six wickets in the second T20I. The match was played at the Bharat Ratna Shree Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Stadium in Lucknow on Sunday, January 29.

With the win, the hosts have now leveled the series 1-1, with the series-decider scheduled to play in Ahmedabad on Wednesday (February 1).

After opting to bat first, New Zealand managed to score only 99/8 - their lowest T20I total-ever against the Men in Blue. The Kiwi batters just couldn't manage to negotiate the turn that was on offer off the surface with skipper Mitchell Santner top-scoring with a 23-ball 19*.

All Indian bowlers, barring Shivam Mavi, who bowled only a single over, took at least one wicket on Sunday.

A target that could've been a walk in the park for the hosts turned out to be a strenuous one as they batted for 19.5 overs to go past it. Suryakumar Yadav was the only batter on the day who breached the 20-run mark and remained unbeaten at 26, alongside Hardik Pandya (15*), to get India home with a winning boundary in the last over.

On that note, let's take a look at the hits and flops from the recently concluded second T20I between India and New Zealand in Lucknow.

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#4 Flop - Indian openers (Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan)

Both Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan aren't having an ideal T20I series so far [Pic Credit: BCCI]

With a string of low scores in recent T20Is, both Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan were in need of staking their claim in the all-important second T20I.

They had a golden chance as they could've easily taken their time in pursuit of a paltry 100 runs in the chase. Unfortunately, for both the young prodigies, another failure didn't help their cause.

While Gill once again fell prey to his pull shot, Kishan endured an unwanted run-out.

After two good-looking boundaries in the initial overs, Gill threw his wicket away in a fancied matchup against off-spinner Michael Bracewell. The right-hander handed a dolly to Finn Allen at deep square-leg and perished at 11 off nine.

Kishan, meanwhile, made a painstaking 32-ball 19 before he was run-out only due to his own mistake in the ninth over. Had Kishan remained unscathed till the end and taken India home, he would've done his confidence a world of good.

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#3 Hit - New Zealand bowling attack

Michael Bracewell celebrating a wicket [Pic Credit: BCCI]

With only 99 runs to defend, the New Zealand bowling unit, especially the spinners, did a remarkable job of making India work for almost every single run in their chase.

Against the likes of hard-hitting batters including Kishan, Rahul Tripathi, Suryakumar and Pandya, the Kiwi bowlers bowled with a perfect plan and almost pulled off an improbable victory at the end.

Even if they didn't get a bucket load of wickets on Sunday, they managed to put a check on easy runs for India.

To complement their bowling attack, New Zealand's ground fielding was on top as well, with two superb run-outs to show.

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#2 Flop - New Zealand batting unit

New Zealand recorded their lowest ever T20I total against India [Pic Credit: BCCI]

Prior to the game on Sunday, teams batting first in Lucknow won all five of the T20Is played at the venue. The stat also tempted the Kiwis to bat first, but their batters just didn't turn up on the occasion.

On a difficult pitch that required batters to show patience and discipline, the Kiwi batters lacked proper application. Most played ill-advised strokes with all three of Allen, Devon Conway and Glenn Phillips falling prey to reverse sweeps.

Barring Santner, who timed the ball perfectly, all Kiwi batters failed to gage movement and bounce on the pitch, leading them to lose eight wickets with just 83 runs on the board.

The fact that no batters even managed to breach the 20-run mark does paint a gloomy picture from New Zealand's perspective.

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#1 Hit - Indian bowling unit

Kuldeep Yadav celebrating a wicket with his teammates [Pic Credit: BCCI]

Yes, batting wasn't easy in Lucknow, but full marks go to the Indian bowling unit as well, who were on top of their game in the second T20I.

It all started when the very first ball from Yuzvendra Chahal ripped past Allen's defense to send shivers into the New Zealand dressing room.

Indian spinners knew that if they manage to stick to their line and length, they can easily make the Kiwi batters dance to their tunes. The Indian tweakers did exactly that, pitching the ball in right areas and almost putting the game to bed in the first innings itself.

While the spinners wreaked havoc and took four wickets between them, leaking only 55 runs in a total of 13 overs, Pandya also put on the squeeze with a decent spell of 1/25.

Coming only to deliver the 18th and 20th overs, Arshdeep Singh, too, didn't disappoint and took home a couple of wickets with his threatening bouncers.