Auckland: New Zealand batter Glenn Phillips produced a remarkable performance in the fourth T20 International against India in Auckland, becoming the first New Zealand player to register three half-centuries in a single T20I series against India. He added further weight to the achievement by scoring a blistering century off just 46 deliveries.
Phillips, who had already recorded two half-centuries in the five-match series, converted his strong form into a major innings in Auckland. He finished with 107 runs from 49 balls, striking six fours and 10 sixes to put the Indian bowling attack under considerable pressure.
His achievement also places him among a select group of batters to have scored three or more half-centuries in a T20I series against India. Before Phillips, West Indies players Shai Hope and Nicholas Pooran had achieved the milestone, with Pooran doing so in 2022.
Phillips’ explosive partnership with Michael Bracewell proved crucial in accelerating New Zealand’s innings and taking the team’s total beyond the 250-run mark. His ability to combine aggressive stroke-making with consistency has made him one of the leading performers in the series.
He also climbed to the top of the tournament’s run-scoring chart, becoming the only batter to cross 200 runs at that stage. India’s Abhishek Sharma was second with 169 runs, although he was yet to bat in the fourth match when the figures were reported.
India entered the Auckland encounter with a commanding 3-0 lead in the five-match series. However, Phillips’ outstanding contribution gave New Zealand a strong opportunity to challenge the visitors.
Playing XIs
New Zealand: Finn Allen, Tim Seifert (wicketkeeper), Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Bevon Jacobs, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner (captain), Nathan Smith, Adam Milne, Jacob Duffy and Matthew Fisher.
India: Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer (captain), Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Naman Dhir, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Mayank Yadav and Prince Yadav.
Phillips’ record-breaking consistency, capped by his rapid century, emerged as one of the defining highlights of the series and strengthened New Zealand’s batting challenge against India.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?si=RtToJsBhYBatUrym&v=mOuYNSdhjHA&feature=youtu.be
