King Kohli Steers India to 1-0 ODI Series Lead in Rain-Affected Opener in Auckland
by Devesh Jaganath | by Devesh Jaganath
India Secure 5-Wicket Victory in ODI Opener Over New Zealand
India confirmed our cricket predictions by securing an impressive five-wicket victory over New Zealand in the opening fixture of their five-match ODI series at Eden Park in Auckland on Wednesday morning.
Virat Kohli returned to the squad for this series and continued his incredible run in the ODI format, scoring a match-winning 74 runs in just 51 deliveries, as the Men in Blue chased down a revised target of 143 in 22.4 overs under the DLS method.
Kohli is now the first player to reach 13,000 runs batting at number 3!
The 38-year-old arrived at the crease after fellow veteran batter Rohit Sharma was dismissed for a six-ball duck. Alongside his skipper Shubman Gill, the two put on a 133-run second-wicket stand to put their side on the brink of victory before the 20-over mark.
Earlier in the day, India’s pace attack did the damage, with Arsheep leading the charge. The left-arm speedster finished with four wickets for 70 runs, while Anshul Kamboj picked up 2/22 and Gurnoor Brar claimed three scalps for just 44 runs in 9.2 overs.
For New Zealand, Tim Seifert and Glenn Phillips were the only batters to score 30+ runs in their innings, while Jacob Duffy was the pick of the bowlers with 3/49 in seven overs. The second ODI gets underway on Saturday at the Wellington Regional Stadium.
India-Pakistan 2027 World Cup Clash Set to Smash Records
While there is still almost a full year to go before the 2027 ICC World Cup kicks off in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia, the marquee matchup of the tournament is already shaping up to be the clash between India and Pakistan.
The October 10 group-stage encounter between these arch rivals, which will be staged at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg, has already received over eight million applications for tickets, according to the latest update from the International Cricket Council.
To put this into perspective, the final of the tournament has attracted 7.9 million requests to date!
The demand for next year’s India-Pakistan encounters reflects a broader surge in interest in the tournament, with the ICC confirming that it has received more than 120 million ticket requests from 2.8 million fans across 193 countries, as the competition is set to return to Africa for the first time in 24 years.
The 2027 tournament will bring together 14 teams for 57 matches across 12 host cities in the three co-hosting nations. Supporters have until November 21, 2026, to enter the free ticket ballot and indicate which fixture they wish to attend.
