India lost their first 20/20 match against New Zealand for T20I Series on Feb 24, 2009. It was comfortable win for New Zealand in the end. McCullum batted through, playing a sensible hand, without going for the big shot too early in his innings. He was helped by a solid show from the rest of the batsmen, as partnerships of 54, 50 and 60 show.
162 was always going to be hard to defend especially given the size of the ground. India's front line bowlers did a decent job but the back-up wasn't quite up to the mark - the seven overs of Irfan, Yusuf and Yuvraj went for 92 runs.
At the presentation ceremony, Dhoni says he wants the batsman to take more responsibility, and that it was a learning experience for the team. "Happy with the way the bowlers bowled as it was a placid track, especially Harbhajan who is coming off a long break, " Dhoni said.
Vettori also praises his bowlers' performance for keeping India down to 162, and is also pleased with the way Brendon McCullum managed the chase.
McCullum is the Man of the Match. He calls his innings 'ugly' and says he never really got used to the pace of the track. He says he was lucky Guptill, Taylor and Oram scored at a quick pace.
Tags: 2020, Cricket, India, Lost, MATCH, Zealand