Christchurch, Oct 24 (IANS) New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner said his side could easily have been 2-0 up in the five-match T20I series had they held their catches, after India pulled off a dramatic late heist to win the second game at Hagley Oval here on Saturday.

India chased down 181 with a ball to spare and won by four wickets, with Tilak Varma (51 not out) and Nitish Kumar Reddy (26 not out) adding 69 runs in the unbroken partnership for the seventh wicket after the visitors had slumped to 70/5.

Santner, who returned impressive figures of 4-21, said the margins between the two sides had been razor-thin across both games, with dropped catches and misfields proving decisive.

"It's a tough catching ground, and the wind kind of swells a little bit. I think if you look at the skills of both teams, it's been very close, and it's come down to some small moments in the field, especially us kind of at the back end of that chase tonight. I think we're in a very good position.

“A couple of drop catches, misfields, and it's that difference between winning and losing in the game. So I think it, from a skills perspective, has been playing some very good cricket; it's just some small moments where if you seize those moments, we could have easily been, I guess, 2-0 up as what India are again," Santner said in the post-match press conference.

The left-arm spinner felt 180 was a competitive total on a surface that behaved differently from the one dished out for the series opener. "I think it was a little bit different. I think there was a bit more tennis ball bounce. I think probably 180 was still a pretty good score.

“But we knew we had to take wickets at the start, and we managed to do that and squeeze through the middle, which was nice. I think we obviously lost the game due to a couple of good partnerships by India in the end."

Santner was full of praise for Bevon Jacobs (58) and Glenn Phillips (70), whose 116-run partnership rescued New Zealand after they lost three early wickets in the power-play. "I think it was a very good partnership in the context of the game. Three down reasonably early and they gave themselves a chance to reassess the conditions, and it's one of those wickets where it was probably tough to start.

“But once you're in, you gave yourself a chance and could cash in a little bit later on, and that's what they did and got us up to a pretty good score. So, BJ is just going to keep getting better and better with more opportunities, and we've seen Glenn do that for a long time and take more responsibility at four, and he's shown that he's a pretty good number four batter."

On his own four-wicket haul, Santner said the tacky surface offered him more grip than in the first game. "Don't get four for that often. So with the wicket, we talked about it being a little bit tacky, and the late nature of the games, there was a little bit of hold, which was nice. So I feel like you could mix it up a bit more, and be a little bit more aggressive, whereas the other night it was skidding on and felt like you were just trying to get out of the overall.

“So it was nice. I think (Michael) Bracewell's been bowling very well in the powerplay, and then the way he's been operating through the middle, and we've been after squeeze for a little bit of pressure. So I guess the size of the ground helps as well, and a couple of them were caught on the fence today; it's probably six at some other ground, so we have to wait and see."

Santner, who has played alongside Tilak at Mumbai Indians, lauded India's finishers in him, Reddy and Naman Dhir, who hit a 17-ball 31. "I think when he (Varma) first started, he was batting at three and it's a slightly different role, so the middle order role was very dependent on how you operate in the middle and then the death phase. I guess I've seen it for a couple of years now in Mumbai - he's very good.

“Same with Naman Dhir - I think the way he's come in, and just they look so free from the start. I think Tilak took his time a little bit today, but managed the chase very well with Reddy at the end. So I think, if you can finish off games as a finisher, you're doing a pretty good job. So I think it was a great knock from those last three, especially tonight."

The skipper expected dew to remain a factor in the toss throughout the series, with the chasing side winning both games so far. "I think there was less dew tonight than there was in the first game because the wind was up a little bit. But I think it's gonna be a factor throughout the series.

“I guess with it being so late - we usually start at seven o'clock- so by the second half, the ball seems to skid a little bit better. So it's definitely a factor at the toss. I think both teams looked at it to bowl first. I guess two chases; even though tonight was a tight chase, it's still two wins for the chasing team."

New Zealand also have fitness concerns, with pacers Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson both leaving the field during the match. "Matt experienced a tight calf. So we didn't want to risk it with the amount of cricket we've got coming up as well. I think Lockie went off as well.

“So just a couple of precautionary injuries; we'll see how they pull up tomorrow morning. I think with the quick turnaround of this series going to the one-dayers and into the Test as well, we don't want to risk too much, but hope that they pull up fine because both are good bowlers," added Santner.

Looking ahead to the third T20I in Wellington on Tuesday, Santner said his side would not dwell on the errors. "Again, we'll reflect on tonight. There was a lot of good stuff again, as there was in the first game, and there's, I guess, some small stuff that's kinda - I wouldn't say it let us down, but it can change games quickly. So I guess no balls always hurt you, drop catches always hurt you, and probably the same on both sides.

"Hagley can be a very tough catching ground. We're going to Wellington, where the wind swirls a lot as well, so it can be another tough catching ground. But I think it's about not dwelling on that too much. The skills are good; the plans were good tonight.

“We'll go assess the conditions again in Wellington, see what the pitch does, assess and see what team we're gonna go with, and then go out there and try, and fire some shots again at India, who are playing some good cricket in New Zealand."

--IANS

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