India’s T20 juggernaut rolled on in Raipur, steamrolling New Zealand by 7 wickets to seal a 2-0 series lead in the second T20I. The spotlight, however, fell on tragic hero Jack Foulkes, whose bowling horror show created an infamous New Zealand T20 record.
At 23, Foulkes embodies New Zealand’s pace future, but Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav turned his dream into a nightmare. In a mere 3 overs, the right-armer bled 67 runs wicketless, toppling Ben Wheeler’s long-standing record of 64 runs from a 2018 clash with Australia.
The carnage unfolded progressively. Over 3: 24 runs, extras galore. Over 9: 25 runs, boundaries raining. Over 14: 18 runs, no respite. Cumulative devastation: 67 runs, now the priciest 3-over T20 spell for Kiwis and among the worst ever.
Contextually, New Zealand’s 208/6 looked daunting after a lost toss. Yet India scripted magic, reaching 209/3 in record time – 15.2 overs for a 200+ chase, redefining T20 chases.
This mismatch exposes bowling vulnerabilities in the shortest format. Foulkes’ learning curve steepens, but India’s batting depth remains a nightmare for opponents. With momentum firmly in grasp, the hosts eye a clean sweep.