Hamilton, November 1, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
India T20I captain Shreyas Iyer admitted that his team fell short with both the ball and in the field after New Zealand defeated India by seven wickets in the fifth and final T20I at Seddon Park on Sunday. India, however, won the five-match series 3-2.
Iyer pointed to the loss of momentum in the middle overs and missed opportunities in the field as key reasons behind the defeat. India posted 191/8 after half-centuries from Iyer (50) and Ishan Kishan (61), but the dismissal of both batters in successive overs disrupted their progress.
New Zealand chased down the target comfortably, reaching 192/3 in 18 overs. Tim Seifert led the charge with 93, while Glenn Phillips remained unbeaten on 65.
Speaking after the match, Iyer said India had made a promising start through the partnership between him and Kishan but put themselves under pressure by losing consecutive wickets.
He described the pitch as challenging, with deliveries both holding up and skidding through, particularly when bowlers hit hard lengths. While considering India’s total reasonable in the conditions, he felt the bowling and fielding could have been sharper.
India also missed important chances during the chase. Naman Dhir dropped Seifert when he was on 13, while Sanju Samson could not hold on to a sharp outside edge from Phillips in the 15th over.
Iyer said fielding was one area the team needed to improve, adding that the conditions under lights in New Zealand offered a different challenge from those generally encountered in India.
Despite the defeat, the captain described the tour as a valuable learning experience. With India having sealed the series after winning the first three matches, the final two games provided an opportunity to experiment and test the squad in overseas conditions.
Iyer said the team had wanted to use the last match to challenge itself further but had not performed to the expected level.
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