Virat Kohli's ton in vain as India start Kiwi tour with a loss

NapierVirat Kohlis exhilarating hundred went in vain as New Zealand staged a dramatic turnaround to pull off a thrilling 24run win in the first cricket onedayer against India to take a 10 lead in the fivematch series here todaySet a formidable target of 293 India seemed on track for a facile win with Kohli 123 off 110 balls anchoring the chase with his 18th ODI century before pacer Mitchell McClenaghans threewicket burst 11 balls changed the complexion of the game completelyVirat Kohli celebrates after reaching the threefigure mark during the first international one day cricket match between New Zealand and India in Napier at McLean Park on Sunday PicAFPFrom a comfortable 224 for five the Indians were all out for 268 in 484 overs with McClenaghan being the wreckerinchief with a match haul of 468Earlier electing to bowl after winning the toss Indias inconsistent bowling effort helped New Zealand pile up 292 for sevenFor the Kiwis apart McClenaghan Corey Anderson shone bright with an allround effort scoring 68 runs off 40 deliveries before knocking off two wickets in his 10 overs of medium pace bowlingTim Southee 143 in 94 overs and Adam Milne 140 in 73 overs gave Anderson good support even as the latter walked off midway in the 41st over with a sidestrainAfter being put in to bat halfcenturies from Anderson Kane Williamson 71 and Ross Taylor 55 helped the hosts reach 2927 in their allotted 50 oversHowever the brightest star of the match ended up in the losing sideKohli who scored his first hundred in a losing cause while chasing found no support from other batsmen none of who managed to reach even the 50run markOpener Rohit Sharma who failed miserably in South Africa looked at sea in foreign conditions once again and was dismissed for three after facing 23 ballsInterestingly Kohli came to the crease and got off the mark with a signature cover drive the first four for India on the 29th ball of the inningsRohitrsquos opening partner Shikhar Dhawan 32 fared much better falling to Anderson in the 19th overBoth Ajinkya Rahane 7 and Suresh Raina 18 failed to make a real contribution and the visitors found themselves in a spot of bother at 129 for four in 282 oversKohli and Dhoni combined well and notched a 95run stand for the fifth wicket taking India closer to the targetThe Indian captain scored 40 runs off only 46 balls with two fours and two sixes More importantly he rotated the strike well with Kohli as the two put up 95 runs for the fifth wicket in just 85 ballsWith Stuart Binny knocking on the doors Ravindra Jadeja 0 didnt do himself any favours with a dismal show with the batKohli hit a few lusty blows to keep Indias hopes alive but his fall in the 45th over ended all chances of an Indian winSome clean hitting by Ravichandran Ashwin 12 and Mohammad Shami7 not out managed to take India close but it was never enoughEarlier Anderson smashed an unbeaten 68 off 40 balls to take New Zealand to 292 for seven after being asked to bat firstAfter losing both openers Martin Guptill 8 and Jesse Ryder 18 cheaply it was Kane Williamson who crafted the innings initially stroking his way to 71 off 88 balls guiding New Zealand to safetyMohammad Shami on his first tour to New Zealand bowled brilliantly removing both openers before dismissing the dangerous Ross Taylor and Nathan McCullum 2Williamson along with former captain Ross Taylor 55 steadied the ship with a patient 121run stand for the third wicketThe hosts lost Williamson just before the final powerplay paving the way for former opener and captain Brendon McCullum 30Shami dismissed Taylor early in the powerplay but New Zealand still managed to score 41 off the five oversThat set the stage for Anderson who recently displaced Pakistans Shahid Afridi as the holder of the record for the fastest hundred in ODIsAnderson bludgeoned his way to a halfcentury in just 30 balls New Zealand benefited immensely as Anderson and Luke Ronchi 30 off 18 balls combined well to rack up 50 runs off just five oversTo their credit however India managed to limit the damage by bowling fulllength balls well outside the offstump The tactic worked in keeping Anderson quiet in the fag end of the inningsBhuvneshwar Kumar who picked up a solitary wicket was the most economical of the Indian bowlers but Shami was the pick of the bowlers taking four wickets for 55 runs in his spell of nine oversBrief Scores New Zealand 2927 in 50 overs Kane Williamson 71 Corey Anderson 67 not out Ross Taylor 55 Mohammed Shami 455 India 268 all out in 484 overs Virat Kohli 123 M S Dhoni 40 Mitchell McClenaghan 468