Kohli Scores 74 as India Beats New Zealand by Five Wickets in Rain-Hit ODI
Virat Kohli hit 74 off 51 balls the day before his 38th birthday, and India's pace attack dismissed New Zealand for 185 as the visitors chased a revised target of 143 under the DLS method.
Auckland2 min read
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India defeated New Zealand by five wickets in the first one-day international of the series at Eden Park in Auckland on November 4, 2026. New Zealand was dismissed for 185 in 40.2 overs. India reached the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern revised target of 143 in 22.4 overs of a match reduced to 32 overs by rain, with 56 balls remaining.
Virat Kohli scored 74 off 51 balls, his 80th ODI half-century. He reached the milestone off 35 deliveries and hit 13 fours and one six. The innings came a day before his 38th birthday. Kohli came to the crease after Rohit Sharma was dismissed for a duck in the first over. He and captain Shubman Gill added 113 runs for the second wicket. Gill made 37. Kohli was eventually caught at deep square leg off Jacob Duffy and left the field acknowledging the predominantly Indian crowd.
India’s pace attack restricted New Zealand after Gill won the toss and chose to bowl. Arshdeep Singh took 4 for 70. Gurnoor Brar, the 6-foot-5 seamer, took 3 for 44. Anshul Kamboj returned 2 for 22 from 10 overs and was named player of the match. He also took a diving slip catch to dismiss Nathan Smith. Tim Seifert top-scored for New Zealand with 38 in his first ODI in more than 18 months, replacing the concussed Devon Conway. Blair Tickner made 34.
Rain interrupted the Indian chase twice. The contest was reduced and the target revised to 143. Kohli continued to play pulls and drives on the bouncy surface after the second resumption. KL Rahul and Naman Dhir finished the job, with Dhir hitting the winning boundary. Jacob Duffy took 3 for 49 for New Zealand. The result gives India a 1-0 lead in the five-match series.
Gill said the bowling performance had been very good and that the team had played well overall. The Eden Park pitch offered bounce that India’s seamers exploited with short-pitched deliveries. New Zealand’s top order repeatedly struggled against the short ball. Five days earlier, New Zealand had scored 259 for 7 in a T20 match, underlining the contrast in conditions and execution between the formats.
Kohli’s knock added to his record in ODI chases. The innings was his first substantial contribution on the tour after a mixed start in the T20 series. India’s fielding was sharp, with the slip catch by Kohli for Kamboj’s wicket standing out. The rain-affected nature of the match limited both sides’ opportunity to bat the full 50 overs, but the margin of victory under the DLS method was clear once Kohli and Gill established the partnership.
The series continues with the second ODI later in the week. India has taken the early advantage with a combination of disciplined seam bowling and Kohli’s controlled aggression on a surface that rewarded positive stroke play. New Zealand will look to address the short-ball vulnerability that cost them the opening match.
