Phillips owns up to NZ's middle-over lapses after India's record Christchurch chase

Glenn Phillips played one of the best T20I innings of the series opener, and it still wasn't enough. After India chased 226 at Hagley Oval on Thursday, the New Zealand all-rounder named where the game got away from his side. He pointed to the middle overs and, less strongly, to the fielding.

Phillips made an unbeaten 82 off 40 balls, which lifted New Zealand to 225 for four. India, who had chosen to bowl first, then finished on 230 for six in 19.4 overs. They won by four wickets with two balls to spare and took a 1-0 lead in the five-match series. It is also India's highest successful chase in T20Is, 21 runs more than the 209 they hunted down against Australia in Visakhapatnam in 2023. It is the highest successful chase at this ground too.

In the press conference, Phillips was generous to the visitors. He said the pitches were excellent and that the extra bounce on offer in New Zealand is something Indian batters are not used to. Even so, he said, they adjusted quickly. He also said any side that reels in 226 deserves credit.

His main point was about phases of play. New Zealand had prepared for an attacking Indian line-up, he said, but plans only count when they are executed. A couple more middle-over wickets, or a few more dot balls strung together, would have put India under pressure. That might have produced a very different result. He sounded like a man who thinks the game was there to be won.

The chase did turn on that stretch. Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma gave India a flying start with an opening stand of 93 in 35 balls, and the fifty came up in 3.2 overs. Samson hit 67 off 33 balls, with eight fours and four sixes, and was named Player of the Match. India lost wickets in the middle overs, though, so the door was open for New Zealand. Captain Shreyas Iyer then made 42 off 28 balls and kept the asking rate in check. Bevon Jacobs added a quick 31 off 16 balls with three sixes for New Zealand's attack to deal with. Axar Patel's 24 off 14 also helped, before Lockie Ferguson removed him.

The finish came from Naman Dhir, whose unbeaten 42 off 15 balls took the chase home. India needed seven from the last over, bowled by Matt Henry. Dhir picked up a boundary off the first ball, and Nitish Kumar Reddy dived to complete a risky single later in the over. Dhir then cleared the rope to end the match. The pitch had also become flatter in the second innings, which Iyer noted afterwards.

Phillips also dealt with questions about dropped catches. He did not accept that four chances had gone down and said only two had actually been put down, one by Mitchell and one by Finn. In his view the other two were never touched. He said drops are part of the game but should be counted accurately. He added that he was pleased with how New Zealand kept fighting and kept taking wickets through the Indian innings. He also said the squad's pace depth was a strength, with enough options to rest regular quicks during a busy schedule.

For India, this is a useful start to the tour. The top order was aggressive from ball one, the captain steadied the middle overs, and a finisher delivered under pressure. That is the batting template they want against hosts who chose to defend a big total. The Indian bowlers will want to improve, since New Zealand got to 225 from the first innings with only four wickets down. Phillips's hitting showed how quickly the scoreboard can move on a good surface.

New Zealand now need to win the middle-over battle in the next game. If they do not, the home side risks going further behind in the series. India will want to show that this chase was a pattern rather than a one-off.