NZ v IND 2020: Henry Nicholls says ODI team felt no impact of 5-0 T20I series loss

Nicholls, Latham and Taylor led New Zealand to their highest successful ODI chase ever in Hamilton.

Henry Nicholls' half-century laid a solid foundation for NZ's chase | APNew Zealand opener Henry Nicholls played an amazing knock scoring a fifty to give the Kiwi chase of 347 runs a good foundation. Ross Taylor hit an unbeaten century and Tom Latham made a fifty as well, as New Zealand won the match by 4 wickets.

This was a good turnaround for the home side, who were thrashed 5-0 in the T20I series and are without their full-time captain Kane Williamson for the first two ODIs.

We didn’t feel it as part of the group coming in. So, I wasn’t feeling any pressure and there is no need to prove anything. It was a small ground and a big chase, so it was nice we were able to do that,” Nicholls said in Auckland.

NZ v IND 2020: Latham delighted as Kiwis show more composure to win Hamilton ODI

It was great, our biggest chase ever in ODI cricket and it was good to be able to contribute in it. In the past, playing India in India, we have had a couple of chases around the 300-mark and others we got close to. It was nice to do that again at home and to actually win the game, it was great,” he added.

Nicholls paid rich tributes to Taylor’s 109* and Latham’s 69 off 48 balls, which enabled Kiwis to pass the finish line. “Having someone like that at number four, especially with Kane Williamson not being there as well, the experience he brings is immense. It is not just about the runs, because batting with him in the middle, you keep having those conversations that help your batting too,” he said.

Taylor and Latham added a quick-fire century partnership in middle overs | GettyOn Latham’s knock, he said: “Tom and I have played together for a long time, so I have certainly seen him play like that before. He is very versatile and adaptive to the game scenario and conditions. The way he started, well it was slow, 2 off 10 balls or something. But he managed to put the pressure back on Kuldeep (Yadav) and their other spinners. Being captain, he led from the front and that partnership changed the game for us.

Nicholls also revealed that he will continue to open the innings as team management wants him to despite Latham’s rich vein of form.

Opening is not too different. I am used to batting in a few different spots. I was opening a bit for Canterbury coming into this series. So, I am trying to form a new partnership up top with Martin Guptill and get those platforms in. I was disappointed to get out after a good start. But with Ross there and the way Tom started, I was confident we could get the chase done. In the end, we only needed run-a-ball and it was the biggest factor for us to finish the game,” he signed off.

(PTI inputs)

 
 

By Jatin Sharma - 06 Feb, 2020

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