India v New Zealand 2019: 4 reasons why India won the 5th ODI 

India made up for their poor performance in the last game by performing better in this one and winning the fifth ODI to take the series 4-1. Rohit Sharma won the toss and chose to bat as he wanted to test the batting line-up while setting up a score. India had made three changes after their loss in Hamilton whereas New Zealand just had the one forced change.

The test didn’t start well as India lost four wickets inside the first powerplay. But some useful contributions from the middle-order batsmen helped India reach a total of 252. Chasing 253, New Zealand lost wickets at regular intervals as they were bowled out for 217 in 44.1 overs. There were times when it seemed like NZ would run away with the game but the Indian bowlers kept pulling it back.

This win will give India a lot of confidence looking ahead at the World Cup because it was the middle-order who contributed heavily. India continued their great form in this format as they won another ODI series. On the other hand, New Zealand would be disappointed with the fact that they were completely outplayed in their own backyard.

Here's a look at 4 reasons why India won the 5th ODI at Wellington.

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#1. The partnership between Ambati Rayudu and Vijay Shankar

Rayudu anchored India's recovery phase

India’s top order once again struggled against the early swing from the New Zealand pacers as they were reduced to 18-4 inside the first ten overs. Boult and Henry had picked up two each and it seemed like it would be a similar story like the last game where India was bowled out for 92. But Ambati Rayudu and Vijay Shankar had different plans.

They came together when India was in real trouble and slowly and steadily started building a partnership. Rayudu initially took a lot of time as he was just looking to survive whereas Shankar who was sent in ahead of Kedar Jadhav and Hardik Pandya rotated the strike really well. They built a 98-run partnership in 133 balls and took India’s score from 18-4 to 116-5. Shankar who was batting beautifully on 45 got run-out due to a huge miscommunication between him and Rayudu.

Nonetheless, this rebuilding of the innings set up a great platform for the likes of Jadhav and Pandya to launch the innings.

#2. Hardik Pandya gives the finishing touch to the India innings

Pandya bamboozled the Kiwi attack in the final few overs

Once Shankar and Rayudu set up the platform for a good score it was the finishers' turn to take over. After the fall of Shankar’s wicket, Ambati Rayudu took the responsibility to accelerate the score and he did it really well.

His last 38 runs came in just 17 balls. While batting on 90 he looked for a big shot and got caught in the deep, but then came in Hardik Pandya. He took 6-7 balls to settle in and once he got into the groove, the all-rounder started smashing the Black Cap bowlers to all the parts of the park. He hit a hat-trick of sixes against leg-spinner Todd Astle.

His knock of 45 off just 22 balls helped India cross the 250-run mark which looked out of reach at one stage. Even though India had lost 5 wickets at the end of 40 overs, the last ten overs yielded 84 runs due to some aggressive batting late in the innings. Kedar Jadhav too, chipped in with a useful score of 34. These contributions from the finishers took India to a par score on that wicket.

#3. Pacers give India the perfect start

Mohammad Shami was once again amongst the wickets for India

The Indian pacers continued their great form as they gave a perfect start to the second innings. They initially kept it tight and didn’t allow the openers to get off to a flier. Mohammad Shami, who was rested for the last game, continued his rich vein of form and sent both the openers cheaply.

He got the wicket of Henry Nicholls with a bouncer, while Munro chopped on a wide delivery on the stumps. So as usual, New Zealand had lost two wickets in the first power play. Bhuvneshwar Kumar backed him with a tight spell from the other end. Once these two were finished with their opening spell it was time for the all-rounders to pile further misery on the opposition batsmen.

Pandya and Shankar too kept it tight and didn’t give many runs. The former picked up the important wicket of Ross Taylor, which completely put the Kiwis on the back foot. NZ were on 49-3 after the 15 overs and this was just the start India wanted after the finish they had got.

#4. Spinners control the middle overs

Chahal and Jadhav gave the breakthroughs at regular intervals

Even though India didn’t have Kuldeep Yadav, Kedar Jadhav sort of took his place and combined with Yuzvendra Chahal to apply pressure on the New Zealand batsmen in the middle overs. Both of them didn’t leak any runs and kept it really tight.

In their initial overs, Williamson and Latham were rotating the strike really well but the spinners didn’t panic. They just bowled good line and lengths, applied pressure through dot balls and forced mistakes. Finally, both Williamson and Latham tried to play some shots and eventually got out. The NZ batsmen succumbed under pressure. Once both of them get out, apart from James Neesham, there weren’t many contributions.

The spinners complemented the pacers really well as they picked up four wickets between them. Chahal was brilliant with his variations. The pacers then came back to finish the game off and win the series 4-1.