Ind vs NZ 2nd ODI: Gurnoor Brar gives Santner in-your-face send-off after 4-wicket haul

Wellington: Young Indian pace sensation Gurnoor Brar made headlines during the second One-Day International against New Zealand at Wellington’s Hnry Stadium, delivering a fiery in-the-face send-off to Kiwi captain Mitchell Santner after snapping a dangerous sixth-wicket partnership. The high-intensity moment capped an extraordinary bowling performance from the Punjab quick, who dismantled the host nation's batting lineup to finish with stellar figures of 4 for 30 in his 10 overs.

The fiery exchange occurred in the 36th over of the New Zealand innings. After opting to field under overcast skies, India’s seamers systematically reduced the Black Caps to 53 for 5. However, Santner joined forces with middle-order anchor Daryl Mitchell to build a resilient 59-run counter-attacking stand. Brar produced a scorching 143kph delivery outside the off stump, inducing a faint outside edge from Santner (31 off 38 balls) directly into the gloves of wicketkeeper KL Rahul. Caught up in the heat of the breakthrough, Brar immediately charged toward the departing Kiwi skipper, celebrated aggressively on his face before getting swarmed by his teammates.

Four-Wicket Haul Crushes New Zealand's Middle-Order

Brar’s aggressive celebration was backed up by exceptional skill throughout his ten-over spell, marking one of his finest international white-ball displays. The tall fast bowler mixed relentless hard lengths with sharp short-pitched deliveries, constantly destabilising the New Zealand batters on a surface assisting quick bowlers.

Brar claimed his first major breakthrough earlier in the innings by dismissing New Zealand wicketkeeper batsman Tom Latham for 7. Setting up the left-hander with angling pace, Brar forced Latham into a mistimed pull shot that resulted in a simple top-edge catch. Following his crucial removal of Santner to break the sixth-wicket resistance, Brar returned to clean up the tail, removing lower-order batter Nathan Smith for 9 via a sharp slip catch taken by Rohit Sharma. He also dismissed dangerous batsman Glenn Philips for a duck. His 4-wicket burst played a primary role in bundling out New Zealand for just 134 in 41 overs.

Pace Attack Sets Up Low-Scoring Series Leveller

Brar was heavily supported by India’s new-ball seam contingent, as Anshul Kamboj and Auqib Nabi took two wickets apiece to maintain unyielding pressure from both ends. Left-arm spinner Axar Patel also chipped in with two scalps, ensuring New Zealand never recovered despite a gritty half-century from Daryl Mitchell (55 off 104 balls).

India’s aggressive bowling effort left their batters with a modest target of 135 runs to level the multi-match series.