CHENNAI: The last few weeks have been nothing short of a dream for Naman Dhir. First came the ODI debut, then the T20I one — both against West Indies. And then came the chance to show the world why he is rated so highly by the team management on Thursday.
The Punjab all-rounder walked in at No 7 in Christchurch when the scoreboard read 167/5 from 14.3 overs in the chase of 226. India had seen Sanju Samson (67 from 33 balls) and Abhishek Sharma (29 from 12 balls) give them a quick start before a mini collapse that led to Axar Patel (14-ball 24) and Shreyas Iyer (42 off 28 balls) playing the perfect rescue act. The job, however, was far from over.
India needed 59 off 33 balls. There was dew on offer, but this New Zealand attack is no easy target. The T20 World Cup winners needed something special from skipper Iyer, who was still in the middle, and Dhir. The youngster, in his nascent career of three ODIs and five T20Is before Thursday, had shown signs of promise. But this was his moment of reckoning. One that could seal the deal as an off-spinning all-rounder who can finish the job with the bat.
Over the next five overs, he did just that. It did not matter that Nathan Smith bowled a boundary-less over. When Mitchell Santner came on, Dhir launched the senior spinner into the stands before going deep in the crease to slash him behind point for a four. With Iyer chipping in, Dhir took on Smith in the next over to hit consecutive fours, keeping India in the chase.
With 16 needed off 12, it seemed like India had it under control. However, Adam Milne removed Iyer to send panic waves. Dhir was not having it. The 26-year-old held his nerve. Not for a second did he look out of control. He stood his ground and launched a low full toss from Milne over extra cover. A four and six followed in the final over against Matt Henry as the youngster took India home with a sensational 42 not out from 15 balls.
If the six-ball 24 not out in Bengaluru against West Indies last week was a teaser, on Thursday, Dhir showed why he belongs to the highest level. Picked predominantly because he can bat down the order and bowl a bit of off-spin — something the team has been looking for — Dhir gives Iyer and head coach Gautam Gambhir an additional option apart from Washington Sundar and Riyan Parag. While the latter has been injury prone, the former's batting abilities down the order in T20s is perhaps not the same as that of Dhir.
With Washington having a significant role to play in the whites, it comes as no surprise that the selectors and team management are looking to groom Dhir as an option in both white-ball formats. "He gives us lots of options. I personally feel the calm and composed nature he showed tonight, it was magnificent," Iyer said about Dhir after the match.
The youngster came up the ranks when Punjab won the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy three years ago before Mumbai Indians scouted him. Since then, he's been a regular with the five-time champions. He was the third best batter for MI this year, finishing with 318 runs at 147.22 strike rate. Dhir has not just replicated but bettered his performance in international cricket so far. And Indian cricket would hope that he continues to get better from hereon.
Brief scores: NZ 225/4 in 20 ovs (Allen 45, Phillips 82 n.o; Mayank 1/40) lost to India 230/6 in 19.4 ovs (Samson 67, Iyer 42, Dhir 42 n.o; Bracewell 2/37).
