IND vs NZ: Michael Bracewell Equals MS Dhoni’s Rare Feat After Scoring A Century Against India
Bracewell scored 140 runs from just 78 balls.
New Zealand’s star all-rounder Michael Bracewell slammed a terrific century against India in the ODI series opener on Wednesday, January 18 at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad.
Bracewell came to bat when Kiwis were languishing at 131/6 while chasing a mammoth 350. He bailed his side out of trouble, clobbering the Indian bowlers to all parts of the ground.
Third-Fastest ODI Century for New Zealand
Bracewell’s valiant knock almost overshadowed the double ton of Shubman Gill, which helped Indian post a mammoth total. Bracewell scored a hundred off just 57 balls, which is also the third-fastest ton by a New Zealand batter in men’s ODIs.
The left-hander eclipsed Craig McMillan, who scored a 67-ball century against Australia in Hamilton in 2007. Corey Anderson, who scored a ton from just 36 balls against West Indies in 2014 and Jesse Ryder, who scored a century off just 46 balls against West Indies occupy the top two spots.
Bracewell Equals MS Dhoni
With this, Bracewell also equalled a rare feat achieved by MS Dhoni with the ton, equalling the former Indian captain’s record of being the only batter to score more than one hundred from No.7 or lower in ODIs.
As for the match, despite his spirited 140-run knock, the Black Caps lost the series opener by just 12 runs. Shardul Thakur cleaned up the lone fighter Bracewell to bowl out the Kiwis for 337 runs in 49.2 overs.
