India defeated New Zealand by five wickets in the first match of the five-match ODI series at Eden Park, taking a 1-0 lead. Player of the Match Anshul Kamboj, Gurnoor Brar and Arshdeep Singh’s impressive bowling, followed by Virat Kohli’s half-century, played a crucial role in India’s victory.

Chasing a modest target of 186 runs, India suffered an early setback when Rohit Sharma was dismissed for a duck with the team’s score at one. Captain Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli then steadied the innings.

The match was interrupted twice due to rain. Following the second interruption, India were set a revised target of 143 runs in 32 overs under the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern (DLS) method.

Gill and Kohli added 113 runs for the second wicket. At one stage, India appeared set for a comfortable nine-wicket victory, but Gill’s dismissal triggered a series of wickets.

Gill was dismissed for 37 off 56 balls at 114. Kohli followed at 124, scoring a brilliant 74 off 51 balls, including 13 fours and a six. Axar Patel was also dismissed for a duck at the same score.

Shreyas Iyer departed for 15 off 13 balls at 136, leaving India five wickets down. KL Rahul remained unbeaten on three, while Naman Dhir scored an unbeaten five to guide India to victory.

India reached the revised target of 143 in just 22.4 overs. For New Zealand, Jacob Duffy took three wickets, while Kyle Jamieson and Nathan Smith claimed one each.

Earlier, after losing the toss and batting first, New Zealand were bowled out for 185 in 40.2 overs. Tim Seifert scored 38, Daryl Mitchell 28 and Glenn Phillips 30. Blair Tickner contributed 34, while Jacob Duffy remained unbeaten on 15.

Anshul Kamboj was economical with the ball, taking two wickets in 10 overs, including two maidens. Arshdeep Singh claimed four wickets despite conceding 70 runs in his 10 overs, while Gurnoor Brar took three wickets for 44 runs in 9.2 overs.

Meanwhile, India secured a convincing five-wicket victory over New Zealand in the first ODI under the DLS method. After restricting New Zealand to 185, India successfully chased the revised target of 143 in 22.4 overs.

Virat Kohli and young fast bowler Anshul Kamboj were the key performers with bat and ball, respectively. However, Kamboj was ultimately named Player of the Match for his outstanding bowling performance.

Kohli played an aggressive and match-winning innings of 74 off just 51 balls, hitting 13 fours and a six. Following Rohit Sharma’s dismissal for a duck, Kohli steadied the Indian innings and laid the foundation for victory. His performance made him a strong contender for the award, but the bowlers’ efforts ultimately proved decisive.

The turning point came during New Zealand’s innings, when young fast bowler Anshul Kamboj, playing only his second ODI, troubled the Kiwi batters with his disciplined bowling. He delivered an economical spell, taking two important wickets and conceding just 22 runs in 10 overs. His controlled bowling helped restrict New Zealand to 185 and made India’s path to victory easier.

After receiving the Player of the Match award, Kamboj revealed his strategy, saying, “The most important thing for me was to keep bowling consistently in the same line and length, regardless of how the pitch behaved.”