Indian team pacer Arshdeep Singh was the pick of the visitors' attack, as his brilliant bowling helped India keep New Zealand below the 200-run mark in the first ODI that was being played in Auckland on November 4, 2026.

India captain Shubman Gill won the toss and chose to bowl first. While Tim Seifert (38), Daryl Mitchell (28), and Glenn Phillips (30) got starts, the rest of the batters struggled to cope with the bounce and movement of the pitch the India pacers got.

They were reduced to 146/9 before Blair Tickner made 34 off 23 balls with 4 sixes to push the final score to 185 runs in 40.2 overs. For India, Arshdeep Singh picked 4/70 in his 10 overs, with Tickner spoiling his bowling figures in the final over, which went for 23 runs. Anshul Kamboj took 2/22 in his 10 overs, while Gurnoor Brar picked three wickets.

Arshdeep accounted for the dismissals of Will Young, Henry Nicholls, Kyle Jamieson, and Glenn Phillips, and then came up with a new celebration after taking the wickets.

After Arshdeep's new wicket celebration made news on social media, he spoke up and revealed that it was for his girlfriend.

“That's for my girlfriend. We do these dance steps when we're out walking or something like that. Whenever the mood is a little low, we cheer each other up with that celebration. So, this was for her,” Arshdeep stated during the mid-match conversation.

When questioned about his favorite wicket of the four during the mid-innings broadcast, he stated that his favorite would have been the fifth wicket, which he was unable to achieve.

“Favourite one would have been the fifth one, which I didn’t get. So, I’m still searching for one," Arshdeep said.

Arshdeep said that he enjoyed bowling at Eden Park, as the playing conditions were favorable for seamers.

“Loving the weather here and there is good purchase off the surface. After coming from the subcontinent, when you get some life in the wickets, it’s always a pleasure to bowl here. And yeah, the wind is helping as well.

I felt like there was something in the wicket, so we were just trying to hit the seam hard and try to get purchase off the surface. And they were trying some shots of that length, so we got the wickets," he added.

In the chase of 186 runs, India had made 54/1 in 10.5 overs with Gill on 17* and Kohli on 29* as rain interrupted the play.