Tilak Varma and Nitish Reddy's 69-run stand seals four-wicket win for India
Tilak Varma's unbeaten 51 and Nitish Reddy's 26 powered India to a four-wicket win in the second T20I against New Zealand.
Tilak Varma and Nitish Kumar Reddy forged an unbroken 69-run partnership to guide India to a four-wicket victory in the second T20I against New Zealand in Christchurch on Saturday. Varma remained unbeaten on 51 from 26 balls while Reddy finished on 26 from 13 deliveries as India chased 181 with one ball remaining.
India slipped to 112 for six in the 15th over before the pair accelerated. They added 17 runs from the 18th over bowled by Jacob Duffy and 18 runs from the 19th over bowled by Nathan Smith to leave 11 runs needed from the final over. Reddy struck the winning runs with two balls remaining.
Glenn Phillips scored 70 from 43 balls and Bevon Jacobs made 58 from 46 to help New Zealand reach 180 for five. Mitchell Santner took four wickets for 21 runs. India lead the series 2-0.
CricHubb Take
The partnership required India to score at nearly 14 runs per over across the final five overs. Their success shows the value of retaining two left-handers who can both rotate strike and clear boundaries against pace in the closing stages.