IND vs NZ, 2nd T20I: Chahal’s notable feat and other key stats

Suryakumar Yadav hit an unbeaten 26 as India edged out New Zealand by six wickets in a low-scoring and tense second Twenty20 international, to level the series at 1-1 on Sunday.

India restricted New Zealand, who won the opener of the three-match series, to 99-8 with Yuzvendra Chahal leading the spin charge on a slow and turning pitch in Lucknow.

India then lost regular wickets as the Kiwi bowlers took it into the final over but Suryakumar, along with Hardik Pandya, anchored the tricky run chase to achieve the target with one ball to spare.

The match witnessed 30 overs of spin without a six being hit in either innings.

The series moves on to the decider in Ahmedabad on Wednesday.

Here are a few interesting statistics from the match:

—Yuzvendra Chahal overtook Bhuvneshwar Kumar as India’s leading wicket-taker in T20Is. Chahal has 91 T20I wickets after he took one wicket in the second T20I against New Zealand, while Bhuvneshwar has 90 scalps to his name.

—There were a total of 239 deliveries in the second T20I without a single six being hit. Among matches played between Full Member teams, the tally of 239 balls were the most number of deliveries in a T20I without a six being hit.

—Among the Full Member teams, New Zealand bowled the second-most number of overs by spinners in a T20I. Both Zimbabwe and Pakistan have previously bowled 18 overs of spin in a T20I, against West Indies and Australia respectively.

— Suryakumar Yadav have won most Player of the Match awards for India since 2021, as far as men’s T20Is are concerned. SKY has so far won 11 PoTM awards, with Virat Kohli behind him with just three PoTM awards since 2021.

With inputs from AFP