India face historic humiliation as Rohit, Kohli and Iyer fall for ducks against New Zealand
Matt Henry's fiery spell leaves India reeling in chase of 334
India suffered a disastrous start to their chase against New Zealand in the fourth One-Day International at Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui on Friday, with Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and stand-in captain Shreyas Iyer dismissed for ducks in a devastating opening over.
The visitors were left reeling after New Zealand fast bowler Matt Henry struck three times in the first over, putting India under enormous pressure as they chased a target of 334.
Rohit departed off the first ball, edging Henry to the slips. Kohli followed after chopping the delivery onto his stumps, while Iyer was trapped leg-before-wicket on the final delivery of the over.
It was a particularly unwanted moment for Rohit, who registered his first golden duck in 205 ODI innings as an opener for India.
The collapse continued when Ruturaj Gaikwad was dismissed for five, caught at second slip off Kyle Jamieson. India had lost four wickets for just nine runs, leaving Ishan Kishan and Axar Patel to rebuild the innings.
In the latest update, India were struggling at 61/5 after twenty overs.
Earlier, New Zealand were bowled out for 333 in 50 overs after being sent in to bat.
Will Young led the hosts' innings with a superb 125, making India pay for two early dropped catches. The opener was given a reprieve in the second over after Rohit and Kishan failed to hold on to consecutive chances.
Tim Seifert provided an aggressive start with 58 off 48 balls, while Finn Allen contributed 41 from 30 deliveries.
For India, Axar Patel, Gurnoor Brar and Auqib Nabi claimed two wickets each. Arshdeep Singh and Naman Dhir picked up one apiece.
India, who had already secured a 2-0 series lead after the third ODI was washed out, were looking to seal the five-match series with another victory. However, the top-order collapse left them facing a formidable challenge.
