India Crushes New Zealand with Dominant Batting and Bowling Display in First T20I

January 21, 2026: India recorded a big win in the first T20I of the five-match series against New Zealand at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Nagpur. The Indian team gave a strong all-round performance, with both batters and bowlers doing very well. The match was played on Wednesday, January 21.

The 'Men in Blue' scored a huge total of 238 runs for 7 wickets, led by Abhishek Sharma. He played a brilliant knock of 84 runs off just 35 balls, hitting five fours and eight sixes. During this innings, he also completed 5,000 runs in T20 cricket. Captain Suryakumar Yadav scored 32 runs, while Hardik Pandya added 25.

Rinku Singh played an important role at the end of the innings. He scored a quick 44 runs from 20 balls and helped India finish strongly. He scored 21 runs in the final over bowled by Daryl Mitchell, taking India’s total to 238/7.

Indian Bowlers Seal Comfortable Win

The Indian bowlers supported the batters well by taking regular wickets. Arshdeep Singh dismissed Devon Conway on the second ball of the innings, with Sanju Samson taking a sharp catch behind the stumps. In the very next over, Hardik Pandya removed Rachin Ravindra.

Tim Robinson, who once scored a T20I century against Australia but was not selected for the T20 World Cup squad, was dismissed next. He mistimed a shot off Varun Chakaravarthy and was caught by Shivam Dube.

India kick-starts the series with a comprehensive 48-run win at Nagpur.#INDvNZ #India #NewZealand pic.twitter.com/WgwDkSFk0x

— Circle of Cricket (@circleofcricket) January 21, 2026

Phillips–Chapman Fightback Ends

Glenn Phillips and Mark Chapman added 79 runs together and tried to keep New Zealand in the chase, even as the required run rate crossed 16 runs per over. However, the partnership ended when Phillips played an extra shot and was caught at long-on off Axar Patel. Axar later left the field due to a split finger after being hit by Daryl Mitchell.

Chapman was dismissed soon after by Varun Chakaravarthy, who finished with figures of 2 wickets for 37 runs. New Zealand continued to lose wickets and could not stay in the chase.

Shivam Dube bowled the final over and took two wickets on back-to-back balls but missed a hat-trick. New Zealand finished at 190 for 7, falling 48 runs short of India’s total.

Brief Scores:
India: 238/7 (20 overs)
New Zealand: 190/7 (20 overs, target 239)

Match Summary: India Beat New Zealand by 48 Runs