New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner has lavished praise on Matt Henry after the hosts registered a thumping 244-run win against India at Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui on Friday. The Kiwis posted a par score of 333 runs on the board after Shreyas Iyer decided to field first.
Will Young scored his fifth ODI century, scoring 125 runs off 108 balls to help the hosts post a decent score on the board. In fact, the Blackcaps captain thought they left a few runs out there in the middle.
However, Matt Henry provided an ideal start, accounting for Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer, without conceding a run on the board, in the very first over. Eventually, Henry returned with impressive and career-best figures of 6-27 and thus played a key role in New Zealand’s comprehensive win.
Santner said in the post-match presentation, “Pretty happy. Didn’t have to bowl again, so pretty happy. Young did his thing and we got a good score despite leaving a few out there. I think we were thinking 360, the intent was great. Maybe if we got 20 more each partnership, we could’ve set up the finish better but they chipped away with wickets. Henry wanted to play today. With the new ball with a wicket that offers a bit, he’s the best. To get three big scalps first over put us on the front foot.”
Henry was awarded Player of the Match for his super performance with the ball.
He said in the post-match presentation, “Wind was strong, I was keeping things simple in the first over. Got a bit of luck, one shot a bit low. I wasn’t worried about swing with the wind in play, just wanted to hit the string, bring the stumps in play. Won’t get too carried away with this. India are a world-class outfit. They can bat deep. It’s one game, hope we can now level the series.”
The fifth and final ODI between New Zealand and India will be played at the same venue on Sunday.
