NEW DELHI: In the seaming conditions of New Zealand, pace bowlers often rule the roost and it's not surprising that batsmen have often found the going tough on pitches assisting bounce and seam movement.
There have been six five-wicket hauls in India vs New Zealand ODIs in New Zealand. Five of those five-fors belong to seamers and only one spinner stands tall on the list.
Here's a look at the top five ODI bowling performances between India and New Zealand in New Zealand:
Trent Boult: 5/21 in Hamilton (2019)India had taken an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series and were led by stand-in captain Rohit Sharma.
Put into bat in the fourth ODI of the series on January 31 at Seddon Park in Hamilton, the hapless visitors were bundled out for 92 runs, their seventh lowest ODI total. The wrecker-in-chief was Trent Boult who bowled his ten overs at a stretch troubling the Indian batsmen with his swing and registering impressive figures of 5/21. Boult swung the new ball both ways to make life miserable for Indian batsmen who found the going tough in the absence of Kohli and
Mahendra Singh Dhoni. It was also India's second lowest total in ODIs against New Zealand, having somehow managing to surpass the 88 scored at Dambulla. India went on to lose the match by 8 wickets as the Kiwis managed to salvage some pride.
Andre Adams: 5/22 in Queenstown (2003)India's 2002/03 tour to New Zealand was infamous for the green-top seaming pitches that had awkward bounce. Put into bat by Stephen Fleming in the fourth ODI at Queenstown on January 4, India were bowled out for 122 runs in 43.4 overs. The Sourav Ganguly-led Indians negotiated the frontline Kiwi pacers Daryl Tuffey, Kyle Mills and
Jacob Oram well, but were all at sea against the medium pace bowling of Andre Adams. With his gentle seam-up deliveries, Adams registered his best ODI bowling figures of 5/22 off 8.4 overs to bowl out India for 122 runs in 43.4 overs. Adams dismissed the top four Indian batsmen and had to wait till the 44th over to complete his first and only five-wicket haul in ODIs.
Richard Collinge: 5/23 in Christchurch (1976)Left-arm medium-fast bowler Richard Collinge made full use of his 6'5" frame to bowl out India for 154 runs in their allotted 35 overs in the first ODI at AMI Stadium in Christchurch on February 21, 1976. Known for bowling full length deliveries to make optimum use of swinging conditions, Collinge rocked the Indian batting line-up, with three of his victims getting clean bowled and one was caught behind. What stood out in Collinge's spell was that his 5 wickets came off 7 overs with one over being a maiden. The great
Gundappa Viswanath top scored for the Indians with a gritty knock of 56 but it wasn't enough to save India from a nine-wicket defeat
Jacob Oram: 5/26 in Auckland (2002)On a two-paced pitch with variable bounce, India registered their worst-ever ODI score against New Zealand at that time, being bundled out for 108 runs in 32.5 overs in the first ODI at Eden Park in Auckland on December 26. India's nemesis with the ball was Jacob Oram who ran through the visitors' batting line-up, taking 5/26 in his ten-over spell - three overs of which were maidens.
Rahul Dravid was the last man dismissed for India after scoring 20 runs off 51 balls. The Kiwis lost 7 wickets in their run chase, with
Javagal Srinath taking 4/23. New Zealand huffed and puffed to victory in the 38th over with Oram remaining unbeaten on 27.
Anil Kumble: 5/33 in Wellington (1994)Sachin Tendulkar had just started to open the innings in ODIs and India were having rollicking starts. In the third ODI of the series at the Basin Reserve in Wellington on March 30, India notched up 255/5 in their 50 overs riding on half-centuries from their top three batsmen - Ajay Jadeja (56), Tendulkar (63) and Navjot Singh Sidhu (71*). The Karnataka duo of Javagal Srinath and Anil Kumble then displayed their prowess with the ball. Srinath took 3/31, but it was Kumble who bowled India to a 12-run victory with his second five-wicket haul in ODIs as the Kiwis managed 243/9 in their 50 overs for India to take a 2-1 lead in the four-match series.