In the first ODI, Team India defeated New Zealand by 12 runs in what turned out to be a thrilling match. India scored 349 runs overall with the help of Shubman Gill‘s double century, while the Kiwis came dangerously close to matching that total thanks to Michael Bracewell’s 140 runs, but they fell just short. By winning this ODI, India is now leading the 3 match series by 1-0.
Gill reached his double century and roared in celebration, scoring 208 runs in 149 balls, including 19 boundaries and 9 sixes, three of which were back-to-back. Skipper Rohit Sharma scored 34 runs while opening with Gill. Whereas as other batters of team India like Virat Kohli and Ishan Kishan did not get to a big mark. Indian vice captain Hardik Pandya on the other side had a good start with the bat, but later got out on a score of 28 as he became embroiled in one of the most peculiar dismissals in the game’s contemporary period.
When facing Daryl Mitchell in the 40th over of the Indian innings, Pandya was pressed for space and unable to block the middle-order batsman’s attempt to cut the ball, which fell into Tom Latham’s gloves. The New Zealand wicketkeeper made an appeal for a valid bowled dismissal shortly after Pandya mistimed his hit and one of the bails came off. The third umpire was confident that Mitchell bowled Pandya and that Latham did not disrupt the bails after looking over the umpire’s referral for the bowled dismissal. The third umpire thought he had gathered enough evidence after seeing many replays to declare Pandya out in the 40th over.
After Pandya got dismissed, huge controversies began to happen on his dismissal and the umpire’s decision. Such as former India opener Wasim Jaffer also seems to be unhappy with Pandya’s dismissal and has criticised the third umpire’s decision. Jaffer alleged that Pandya was “robbed” and that there was plenty daylight between the ball and the bails, with the lighting appearing only after Tom Latham’s gloves touched the bails. By claiming this Jaffer expressed his dissapointment towards the decision.
