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India suffered a crushing 103-run defeat to New Zealand, after being shot out for 198 while chasing a mammoth 301 runs, in a warm-up game ahead of the Champions Trophy in Potchefstroom on Sunday.
Bowling continued to be India's main worry. Except for leg-spinner Amit Mishra (1 for 29) and Yusuf Pathan (3 for 46), all the bowlers were expensive.
New Zealand, who opted to bat first on winning the toss, amassed the huge total, thanks to half-centuries by Jesse Ryder and Martin Guptil at top of the order, and a fiery 66 by Neil Broom later.
Despite getting a start, the Indians were never really in the hunt. The opening pair of Dinesh Karthik and Rahul Dravid scored 58 runs in quick time. Dravid, in particular, looked in scintillating touch, hammering Shane Bond for four fours in one over, all distinct from each other.
The experienced batsman first hooked and then drove Bond imperiously through the covers. He then dabbed a delivery to third man fence and delicately glanced another past fine leg boundary.
But once 'The wall' departed, the Indians showed little stomach for a fight. Suresh Raina (31) delighted for a while and once smote Vettori over widish long-on but was soon run-out.
New Zealand showed they meant business as their four frontline bowlers were in operation till the back of the Indian batting was seen. When the score read 130 for 7 at more than halfway through the overs, the writing was clearly on the wall for the Indians.
Earlier, during the New Zealand innings, Ryder, the left-handed opener, took a heavy toll of new-ball bowler Praveen Kumar, picking six of the eight fours hit against the right-arm swing bowler.
Ryder also smacked Ishant Sharma for a massive six as he clobbered 57 runs from 48 balls, inclusive of 10 fours and a six.
Ryder got good momentum from the other end as Brendon McCullum (15 off 17 balls) and Guptill (63 off 79 balls) also went about smashing the bowling, bringing up New Zealand's 150 in 28th over.
India's spin duo of leg-spinner Amit Mishra (1/29) and off-spinner Yusuf Pathan (3/46) applied brakes in the middle overs but did not get support from the other bowlers.
Broom provided a bigger thrust in the closing overs, hitting 66 from 46 balls, inclusive of five fours and four sixes.
In RP Singh's eighth over, the penultimate of the innings, he clobbered 25 runs, including three sixes and a four.
Scorecard
New Zealand:
Brendon McCullum b RP Singh 15
Jesse Ryder c and b Raina 57
Martin Guptill c Raina b Pathan 63
Ross Taylor run out 23
Grant Elliott c Pathan b Mishra 30
Jacob Oram c Karthik b Pathan 7
Neil Broom c Singh b Sharma 66
Daniel Vettori b Pathan 17
Ian Butler not out 14
Jeetan Patel run out 0
Extras: (lb6, w3) 9
Total: (for 9 wkts in 50 overs) 301
Fall of wickets: 1-33, 2-93, 3-148, 4-167, 5-177, 6-211, 7-254, 8-301, 9-301.
Bowling: Praveen Kumar 5-1-48-0, RP Singh 8-2-66-1, Ishant Sharma 7-0-49-1, Amit Mishra 10-0-29-1, Suresh Raina 4-0-17-1, Yuvraj Singh 6-0-40-0, Yusuf Pathan 10-0-46-3.
India:
Dinesh Karthik c Oram b Vettori 20
Rahul Dravid b Jeetan Patel 37
Suresh Raina run out 31
Mahendra Singh Dhoni c Guptill b Vettori 9
Yusuf Pathan c McCullum b Bond 13
Yuvraj Singh b Bond 9
Abhishek Nayar b Oram 41
Praveen Kumar run out 1
Amit Mishra c Tuffey b Oram 26
RP Singh c McCullum b Tuffey 1
Ishant Sharma not out 0
Extras: (b1, w9) 10
Total: (all out, 40.3 overs ) 198
Fall of wickets: 1-58, 2-70, 3-101, 4-112, 5-125, 6-128, 7-130, 8-197, 9-198.
Bowling: Daryll Tuffey 8.3-0-34-1, Shane Bond 7-1-38-2, Daniel Vettori 10-0-46-2, Jeetan Patel 6-0-28-1, Ian Butler 2-0-11-0, Martin Guptill 2-0-14-0, Jacob Oram 5-1-26-2.