IND v NZ: Daryl Mitchell ends 48-year-long New Zealand wait for World Cup century vs India

Daryl Mitchell continued to be New Zealand’s reliable lynchpin in the middle order as the senior batter hit his maiden ODI World Cup century, steering.

The BlackCaps out of trouble against India in Dharamsala in a crunch top-of-the-table clash on Sunday, October 22. Daryl Mitchell hit his hundred in 100 balls as New Zealand looked set to post a competitive total after losing the toss at the scenic HPCA Stadium.

Dary Mitchell also became only the second New Zealand battler to score a hundred in a World Cup match against India. Glenn Turner was the previous BlackCaps batter to hit a World Cup hundred against India. He hit 114 not out against India in 1975 in Manchester. New Zealand batters hit as many as 17 hundreds after that century at Old Trafford but none of them came against India.

It was also Daryl Mitchell’s first ODI World Cup hundred and his 5th in the format. The Rajasthan Royals batter has been in fine form in the World Cup 2023, hitting 48 against the Netherlands in Hyderabad and a crucial 89 not out against Bangladesh on a spin-friendly pitch in Chennai.

Mitchell took off his helmet and signalled to the dressing room, which was up on its feet to applaud the effort from the senior batter, who has been the BlackCaps’ finest middle-order batter in the last 2 years.

Dary Mitchell, who walked in at No. 4, joined hands with Rachin Ravindra when New Zealand were 19 for 2 in the 8th over. India’s bowling unit, which was without Hardik Pandya, had its tail up as Mohammed Siraj and Mohammed Shami had struck to remove the New Zealand openers Devon Conway and Will Young cheaply.

However, Mitchell and Ravindra took their time before opening up and putting the pressure right back on the Indian bowlers. They got to their 100-run partnership in 102 balls and finished their 3rd-wicket stand of 159, the highest for New Zealand in a World Cup match against India.

Mitchell and Ravindra did not allow the two Indian spinners to settle into any kind of rhythm as they went after Kuldeep Yadav. Mitchell hit 2 sixes against Kuldeep in the left-arm spinner’s first three overs as he came up with a textbook approach of diffusing INdia’s spin threat in the middle-overs.

Mitchell hit as many as 4 sixes and 7 boundaries when he got to his hundred. However, young Rachin Ravindra, who had hit a century against England on his World Cup debut in Ahmedabad on October 5, missed out on his second hundred as he was dismissed for 75 by Mohammed Shami.