Indian captain Shreyas Iyer was ecstatic as the Men in Blue defeated New Zealand in the fifth and final ODI, which was played on November 15, 2026, at the Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui. India had come into this game with a lead of 2-1, despite having lost the 4th game by a record 244 runs.
New Zealand skipper Mitchell Santner called correctly at the toss and elected to field, sending India in to bat. Senior batters Rohit Sharma (7) and Virat Kohli (5) departed early, and Ruturaj Gaikwad (22) along with captain Shreyas Iyer (18) also fell cheaply.
It was Axar Patel (46) and Ishan Kishan (46) who steered India toward a respectable total, while Naman Dhir added 22 to give the innings some momentum. Ultimately, Mohammed Siraj's 14* and Arshdeep Singh's two sixes off 4 balls for 14 runs lifted India to 209 in 42.1 overs. For New Zealand, Jacob Duffy and Mitchell Santner claimed three wickets apiece, while Matthew Fisher picked up two.
New Zealand's chase lacked a batter to hold one end. Dean Foxcroft top-scored with 31, while Nick Kelly (24), Santner (24), and Will Young (22) made useful contributions. Yet the Indian bowlers kept the Kiwi batters under constant pressure, and they lost wickets at regular intervals. In the end, New Zealand were bowled out for 187 and lost the match by 22 runs.
Arshdeep Singh finished with 3/30 and was named Player of the Match, while Mohammed Siraj and Axar Patel took two wickets each. With this victory, India clinched the ODI series 3-1. Gurnoor Brar won the Player of the Series award.
India had also won the T20I series 3-2 under Shreyas Iyer, while he took over from Shubman Gill after the first three ODIs.
“Ecstatic. I think both the series, T20 and ODI, are coming over here; we were provided with different conditions. The weather kept changing. Faced with a lot of challenges and coming out triumphant, I think it’s a great achievement. And today we had that certain kind of belief, even though we didn’t get that many runs in batting. But still, we were hoping that we could change the game at any point in time. And I’m glad that every individual thought in the same direction and we were able to execute that,” Iyer stated in the post-match presentation, as quoted by Cricbuzz.
Shreyas Iyer was asked about the challenges the Indian team faced in the ODI series and how the bowling department came out well when it mattered.
"Definitely; if you see the whole series, it wasn’t a series for batsmen. The way the bowlers bowled, they stood up to the occasion and definitely were confident enough to see to it that they would get the team through irrespective of the conditions. I think that’s the mindset of all the players that we need and the character each and every individual possesses. It’s top-notch.
It becomes, at some point in time, challenging for the players when there’s chopping and changing. They need to acclimatize to the condition and adapt, as you mentioned earlier. But we didn’t want to give any excuse. We just wanted to live up to our expectations, and every individual was just willing to come out here and give their best,” Shreyas Iyer said.
Shreyas Iyer was thankful for the Indian fans' support, who thronged to all the venues where India played in the white-ball series. He also spoke about the on-and-off field equation and respect between Indian and New Zealand players.
“Absolutely, we’ve been seeing them coming in numbers, and the way they have supported us irrespective of the results, you know. It went in our way sometimes; it went in New Zealand’s way. They were supporting both teams, which is very heartening to see. And this is the kind of support we need. And also, the sport is growing to a different level. We know what kind of inspiration we get from them. So, thanks a lot for the love and support to each and every one who has been here.
Yes, absolutely. I feel that that’s how it should be. Off the field should be friendly, but on the field it’s like a war,” Shreyas Iyer concluded.
Shreyas Iyer is not part of the Indian Test squad and will return home. The two-match Test series between India and New Zealand begins on November 19 with the first game in Wellington.
