Wellington, Nov 7 (IANS) A disciplined bowling performance, led by Gurnoor Brar’s four-wicket haul, helped India bundle out New Zealand for a modest 134 in 40.6 overs in the second ODI at the Basin Reserve in Wellington on Saturday, putting the visitors in a commanding position.

Brar returned impressive figures of 4-30 from his 10 overs, while Auqib Nabi and Anshul Kamboj picked up two wickets apiece as New Zealand struggled to cope with India’s disciplined attack on a two-paced surface.

India made an early impact after opting to bowl, with Nabi striking in the second over to remove Tim Seifert for a duck. Seifert mistimed a drive off a delivery that held up on the surface, handing Kamboj a straightforward catch at mid-on. The pacer then accounted for Will Young (6), who edged a delivery outside off to wicketkeeper KL Rahul, leaving the hosts struggling at 11/2.

Kamboj joined the wicket-taking effort by dismissing Henry Nicholls (11) in his first over, with the left-hander getting an inside edge onto his boot before the ball rolled back onto the stumps. New Zealand were reduced to 23/3 inside nine overs and managed only 29 runs in the first 10 overs.

Brar then took charge of the middle overs, producing a double strike in the 20th over to remove Tom Latham (7) and Glenn Phillips (0). Both batters fell attempting pulls against his short deliveries, with Naman Dhir and Kamboj completing the catches at deep square leg and fine leg, respectively.

New Zealand’s slide continued as they slipped to 53/5, but Daryl Mitchell attempted to revive the innings with a patient 55 off 104 deliveries, striking five fours and two sixes. He found an able partner in captain Mitchell Santner, who contributed 31 off 38 balls, as the pair added 59 runs for the sixth wicket.

However, Axar Patel broke the partnership by dismissing Mitchell in the 35th over, with Anshul Kamboj taking the catch at long-off. Brar subsequently removed Santner, who edged behind to Rahul, before Axar bowled Kyle Jamieson (7).

Brar added Nathan Smith’s wicket in the 40th over, while Kamboj finished the innings by bowling Blair Tickner (2) in the following over, wrapping up New Zealand’s innings at 134.

Brief Scores: New Zealand 134/10 in 41 overs (Daryl Mitchell 55, Mitchell Santner 31; Gurnoor Brar 4-30, Anshul Kamboj 2-25, Axar Patel 2-28, Auqib Nabi 2-31) against India.

--IANS

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