In Auckland, India was defeated in the second ODI against New Zealand by 22 runs. With the defeat, the Men in Blue eventually went on to lose the three-match ODI series as the Black Caps have gained an unassailable lead of 2-0.
Well, Virat Kohli might be disappointed with India’s performance though there were still some positives to take from the penultimate ODI in Auckland. The second game witnessed the lower order batsman Navdeep Saini’s prolific performance from the bat.
His batting show kept Team India in the hunt on aiming to close on the target. At one point in time it looked, his willow might lead the team to the finishing point but disappointingly he lost the wicket to the debutant Kyle Jamieson.
As soon as Saini departed, India’s hopes seemed to fade away despite Ravindra Jadeja being there on the other side.
Saini stitched a partnership with Ravindra Jadeja of 76 runs for the ninth wicket. The pacer scored 45 runs that included five fours and two maximums.
I will regret it when I go back – Navdeep Saini
In the post-match conference, the speedster opened up how he felt after losing the wicket at a crucial point.
“I will regret it when I go back and see the video. If I hadn’t got out, maybe the result could have been different. Will regret that I took it so close and maybe could have gotten closer,” Saini revealed.
Navdeep Saini reveals his conversation with Jadeja:
Further, he also revealed the conversation between him and Jadeja while setting-up an interesting partnership which eventually made Kiwis interim skipper, Tom Latham to re-think.
“We felt the wicket was flat and if we could stay till the end, the match could go close. So we were trying to contribute as much as possible and take the match to the end. Jadeja had told me that if you get a boundary ball hit it. Otherwise, take singles or doubles, try to keep patience and we can take the game to the end,” the young fast bowler added.
While Saini believes that winning and losing is a part and parcel of the game. But the team should keep improving the performance.
“You feel bad that you lose the series obviously, but we will learn from our mistakes. Winning or losing doesn’t matter much but our performances should get better,” Saini said.
Meanwhile, India and New Zealand will face-off in the third and final ODI game at Bay Oval on Tuesday (12 February).