Dane Cleaver

<a href="https://www.cricket.com/players/63345/shardul-thakur/career-stats" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Shardul Thakur&#39;s</a> blazing 33-ball 51 was well complemented by Raj Angad Bawa&#39;s fine bowling show (4/11) as India A crushed New Zealand A by 106 runs in the third and final unofficial ODI to clinch the <a href="https://www.cricket.com/series/domestic/2665/new-zealand-a-tour-of-india-2022/matches" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">series 3-0</a> in Chennai on Tuesday (September 27).Captain <a href="https://www.cricket.com/players/61837/sanju-samson/career-stats" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Sanju Samson</a> (54 off 68 balls) and <a href="https://www.cricket.com/players/70761/tilak-varma/career-stats" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Tilak Varma</a> (50 off 62 balls) also scored half-centuries after India opted to bat but it was Thakur&#39;s blitzkrieg down the order that took the home side to 284 all out in 49.3 overs. Thakur struck four boundaries and three sixes during his 33-ball entertaining knock.Chasing 285 for a victory, the visitors were bowled out for 178 in 38.3 overs despite getting a good start from the openers Chad Bowes (20) and <a href="https://www.cricket.com/players/59121/dane-cleaver/career-stats" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Dane Cleaver</a> (83 off 89 balls). The 19-year-old Bawa, who shone in the ICC Under-19 World Cup earlier this year, ran through the middle and lower order of New Zealand&#39;s batting line-up with a four-wicket haul.The young all-rounder picked up three of the last four NZ &nbsp;wickets to fall for fine figures of 4 for 11 to finish as the best Indian bowler.Earlier, Abhimanyu Easwaran (39 off 35 balls), brought into the playing XI in place of Prithvi Shaw, and Rahul Tripathi got off to a brisk start. The duo added 55 runs in 8.5 overs. Easwaran hit two boundaries to signal his intent while Tripathi smacked a pull to the square-leg boundary.Against the run of play, Easwaran nicked one to the &#39;keeper off Matthew Fisher. Samson, who came in at No.3, saw Tripathi (18) fall with the score at 65. The captain joined forces with the talented Tilak Varma to put together an impressive stand.Varma, who had impressed many with his knocks for Mumbai Indians in this year&#39;s IPL, got off the mark with a six over long-off region from the second delivery he faced. The two scored briskly and added 99 runs in 106 balls, with neither hesitating to go aerial. Varma fell to the left-arm spin of Rachin Ravindra for an impressive 50.KS Bharat, playing his first game of the three-match series, did not last long, dismissed by Fisher for 9. Samson looked good for a big score before falling LBW to medium-pacer Jacob Duffy for a 68-ball 54 (1 four, 2 sixes). Bawa fell to the same bowler for 5 and India slipped to 206 for 6.Thakur, who batted with aplomb in the second match, came up with a blazing 33-ball 51 and his furious assault left the NZ bowlers clueless. His aggressive knock helped the host post a challenging total of 284.The visiting team&#39;s opener Cleaver batted in an enterprising manner and powered the chase but lack of support from the other end resulted in the challenge falling flat. Save for the half-century partnership for the first wicket, the rest of the batters failed to raise to the occasion.Legspinner Rahul Chahar (2/39) struck the first blow, removing Bowes to a catch in the deep off a sweep. Ravindra, who shone in the previous game, made just two, becoming Chahar&#39;s second victim.Cleaver, meanwhile, kept getting the runs but the Kiwis kept losing wickets at regular intervals. Tripathi, bowling medium-pace, got a wicket too, dismissing NZ captain Tom Bruce for 10.Michael Rippon (29) helped Cleaver add 31 runs from 24 balls before the latter fell to Rishi Dhawan (1/27). Left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav, who picked up a hat-trick in the second match, grabbed two wickets including that of Robert O&#39;Donnell (6).From 175 for 6, the NZ innings folded quickly as Bawa picked up the wickets of Rippon, Duffy (1) and Fisher (0).Powered by <a href="https://www.froala.com/wysiwyg-editor?pb=1" title="Froala Editor">Froala Editor</a>

Chasing 285 for a victory, the visitors were bowled out for 178 in 38.3 overs 

Shardul Thakur

Raj Bawa

Sanju Samson

Tilak Varma

New Zealand A tour of India, 2022

India A

New Zealand A

Thakur, Bawa help India A complete 3-0 whitewash over New Zealand A

For some, New Zealand&rsquo;s clean sweep in their recently-concluded European tour that saw them win every T20I and ODI they played against Ireland, Scotland and the Netherlands, was nothing short of a formality. The result was on expected lines but they did get stretched on more than one occasion. They had to dig deep but managed to close out close matches, showing the wealth of experience in the squad, despite many not being first-choice picks.With the likes of Kane Williamson, Tim Southee, Trent Boult, Devon Conway, and Kyle Jamieson among other big stars back soon, many have made a case for themselves to be regular picks in the main side. Ahead of the T20 World Cup, this comes as terrific news for the Blackcaps, who would want to go one step forward and clinch the title this time around.&nbsp;Versatile Mitchell&nbsp;Over the last few months, Daryl Mitchell has shown his versatility with the bat and his willingness to adapt to different positions, different formats and different roles with utmost ease. He smashed three centuries in the Tests against England and then quickly changed gears in the limited-overs series starting with the tour of Ireland.He finished as New Zealand&rsquo;s highest run-scorer in the T20I leg of the European tour with 187 runs with a strike-rate close to 150. Not too long ago, the Blackcaps took everyone by surprise when he opened with Martin Guptill in the T20 World Cup last year.&nbsp;<img src="https://images-cricketcom.imgix.net/1659963720389-articleimg" style="width: 600px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">He can bat anywhere from 1-5 and also chip in with an over or two of his gentle medium pace. Regardless of the position he plays in moving forward, New Zealand have found a player who can don multiple roles.Bracewell continues to shineMichael Bracewell did his credentials as a genuine all-rounder no harm with impressive shows with both bat and ball. His prowess with the bat is well-known given that he was the leading run-getter in the Super Smash season 2021-22 with 478 runs at a strike-rate close to 150, which included a century and four fifties in 10 innings. &nbsp;He took his side over the line in the first ODI against Ireland, chasing 301, when it looked all looked lost at 153 for 6. But Bracewell rallied along with the tail and took his team home with 20 needed off the final over. What followed was absolute carnage as Craig Young was dispatched for 4, 4, 6, 4, and 6 as New Zealand walked away with a one-wicket victory. &nbsp;He also scored an unbeaten 42 and 21 in the next two games as New Zealand swept the series 3-0.ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cricket.com/news/michael-bracewell-makes-international-cricket-his-own-with-minimum-fuss-1657713969852" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Michael Bracewell makes international cricket his own with minimum fuss</a>However, it is his skillset as a bowler that has given New Zealand the edge. He picked up five wickets from four ODI games on this tour and six wickets in the T20Is that included a hat-trick in his first over in the format. Not to forget, he scored an unbeaten 25-ball 61 against Scotland as New Zealand went on to register their highest T20I total.As someone who can play at three and also easily slip into the finisher&rsquo;s role Bracewell certainly has a lot to offer in the years to come and it would be daft of New Zealand to not have him for the T20 World Cup.Depth in fast bowlingWhile Boult, Southee, Jamieson and Lockie Ferguson will mostly continue to be New Zealand&rsquo;s preferred choice, especially in T20Is, the likes of Blair Tickner, Ben Sears and Jacob Duffy too have shown glimpses of what they bring to the table. What will please New Zealand is the fact that Ferguson managed to stay fit during the entirety of the tour. Tickner got better and better as the tour went on finishing with 11 wickets from seven matches across the tour, while Duffy and Sears finished with eight and five wickets respectively.James Neesham too provided the young guns with the much-needed support at times, claiming four scalps, while Matt Henry, who played just three ODIs &ndash; all against Ireland &ndash; chipped in with sevenWider wicketkeeping optionsIn a squad that already has Tom Latham, Devon Conway Tim Seifert with Glenn Phillips and Finn Allen further deepening their resources, Dane Cleaver too has thrown his name into the hat. He has shown he is safe as house behind the wickets with his nimble footwork and terrific glovework. With bat in hand, he did play a couple of useful hands including an unbeaten 55-ball 78 in just his second T20I against Ireland.&nbsp;Overall, he hit 150 runs across eight white-ball matches. He also took 10 catches and inflicted a couple of stumpings as well, which are not too shabby either.&nbsp;In the last Super Smash season, Cleaver finished just behind Bracewell in the runs tally scoring 369 runs from nine innings at a strike-rate of 166.21.Irreplaceable Ish Sodhi&nbsp;Ish Sodhi played all the T20Is on this tour and ended up as New Zealand&rsquo;s best bowler with 13 wickets at 14.15, striking once every 11.5 deliveries. Sodhi experimented with a bit of a longer run-up which worked in his favour as that helped him with some rhythm as he approached the crease.&nbsp;<img src="https://images-cricketcom.imgix.net/1659963542851-articleimg" style="width: 600px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">New Zealand. The other three spinners in the side, Mitchell Santner (6), Bracewell (6) and Michael Rippon (2), who became New Zealand&rsquo;s first left-arm wrist-spinner contributed just a wicket more than Sodhi, but playing a vital supporting role nevertheless.Opening conundrum?Unlike India, who have used nine opening combinations this year alone, New Zealand have been a little circumspect with just seven pairs since 2021. While Mitchell and Martin Guptill opened throughout the T20 World Cup last year, this year, it has been the pair of Guptill and Allen opening for them throughout. Since opening for the first time against Bangladesh in March last year, Guptill and Allen have put together 325 runs 36.11 at a healthy rate of 9.75.&nbsp;<img src="https://images-cricketcom.imgix.net/1659963500351-articleimg" style="width: 600px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Allen played all 11 matches on the tour. In the T20Is, he scored 178 runs at a strike-rate of over 154, which included a superb hundred against Scotland. He struck two fifties in four ODI innings in a total of 149 at an impressive strike-rate of 104.19.Powered by <a href="https://www.froala.com/wysiwyg-editor?pb=1" title="Froala Editor">Froala Editor</a>

The Blackcaps led by Mitchell Santner won all 11 white-ball games during their tour of Ireland, Scotland and the Netherlands

Daryl Mitchell

Finn Allen

Michael Bracewell

Mitchell Santner

Ish Sodhi

New Zealand tour of Ireland, 2022

New Zealand tour of Scotland, 2022

New Zealand tour of Netherlands, 2022

New Zealand

New Zealand’s European tour unearths long-term prospects

Michael Bracewell rounded off New Zealand&#39;s crushing 88-run win over Ireland in the second T20 at Belfast on Wednesday (July 22) with a hat-trick.Ireland, chasing 180 to win, collapsed to 91 all out inside 14 overs at Stormont and were all but beaten when off-spinner Bracewell removed tailenders Mark Adair, Barry McCarthy and Craig Young with successive deliveries to become only the third New Zealand bowler to take a hat-trick at this level after pacemen Jacob Oram and Tim Southee.Leg-spinner Ish Sodhi broke the back of Ireland&#39;s innings by removing Curtis Campher, Lorcan Tucker and George Dockrell in a return of 3-21.Had it not been for an eighth-wicket stand of 37 between Adair, who top-scored in the innings with 27, and McCarthy, Ireland might have suffered an even more crushing defeat.Ireland&#39;s chase had started in style, with experienced opener Paul Stirling smashing spinner Mitchell Santner for a six and a four in the first over. Stirling also struck fast bowler Lockie Ferguson through the covers for another four only to fall for 21 when he sliced the paceman to mid-off.His exit prompted a dramatic collapse that saw seven wickets lost for 31 runs as 23-0 was transformed rapidly into 54-7, with Jacob Duffy bowling No 3 Gareth Delany for a golden duck.Earlier, Dane Cleaver&#39;s unbeaten 78 took New Zealand to 179-4 after Ireland captain Andy Balbirnie won the toss. Cleaver, playing only his second T20 international, faced 55 balls including five fours and four sixes after coming into bat when New Zealand were 44-1 in the fifth over.The series concludes when the teams return to Stormont on Friday.&nbsp;Powered by <a href="https://www.froala.com/wysiwyg-editor?pb=1" title="Froala Editor">Froala Editor</a>

The batter scored an unbeaten 78 before Bracewell became only the third New Zealand bowler to take a hat-trick at this level

Josh Little

Ireland

Dane Cleaver shines as New Zealand secure T20I series win over Ireland

New Zealand pace bowler Kyle Jamieson will return home to New Zealand after an MRI scan revealed a stress reaction to his lower left-back. The 27-year-old sustained the injury while bowling on day three of the second Test against England and coach Gary Stead expected he would require four to six weeks of rest before beginning a rehabilitation program targeting a potential return to play in September or October.Pacer Blair Tickner, who was with the Test side in England for the early tour games, has been called into the squad as Jamieson&rsquo;s replacement and will arrive in the UK prior to the third Test at Leeds next week. Tickner&rsquo;s domestic teammate Dane Cleaver has received his maiden Test call-up as a replacement for wicket-keeper Cam Fletcher who has also been ruled out of the tour with a grade-two right-hamstring strain.&nbsp;Fletcher sustained the injury while fielding on day four of the second Test and will require six to eight weeks to recover. Cleaver was called up to the NZ squad for the first time as part of the T20 side to face the Netherlands in March, however the one-off match was abandoned due to weather.Stead expressed his sympathy for Jamieson and Fletcher and thanked them for their efforts. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s always sad to see players forced to leave a tour early with injury. Kyle had played such a big role in the first Test at Lord&rsquo;s and I know how disappointed he was to have had his involvement in the second Test curtailed.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s obviously a huge asset for us and we&rsquo;ll be making sure we are patient with his recovery to ensure he returns fully fit with plenty more important cricket still to come later this year. It&rsquo;s exciting for Blair and Dane to be joining us for the final Test at Headingley next week. Blair was with us for the first part of the tour and his skills will be a valuable asset to the squad.&ldquo;It will be Dane&rsquo;s first experience with the Test side and I know he can&rsquo;t wait to get here and soak it up.&rdquo;New Zealand will have a couple of days off before regrouping in Leeds ahead of the third Test at Headingley starting on Thursday June 23.Powered by <a href="https://www.froala.com/wysiwyg-editor?pb=1" title="Froala Editor">Froala Editor</a>

While Jamieson suffered a stress reaction to his lower left-back, Fletcher sustained the injury while fielding on day four of the second Test

Kyle Jamieson

Cam Fletcher

Blair Tickner

New Zealand tour of England, 2022

Jamieson, Fletcher ruled out of England tour; Tickner & Cleaver added to the squad

In the absence of 12 New Zealand IPL-bound stars, the BlackCaps have named a rather depleted squad, with the likes of Michael Bracewell and Dane Cleaver earning their maiden call-ups. The BlackCaps will be led by Tom Latham, who is without an IPL contract, across all the four games against the Dutch side.&nbsp;&quot;Anytime you lose 12 front-liners it&#39;s going to be a challenge, but we&#39;re really excited by the players we&#39;ve been able to call on,&quot; coach Gary Stead said.&nbsp;&quot;With another T20 World Cup later this year and the ODI World Cup next year it&#39;s a good time to be offering opportunities to a wider group of players.&quot;<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Our squads for the <a href="https://twitter.com/kfcnz?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@kfcnz</a> Netherlands Tour are here! Game 1 against <a href="https://twitter.com/KNCBcricket?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@KNCBcricket</a> is next Friday. More | <a href="https://t.co/D4t2fGR3tZ">https://t.co/D4t2fGR3tZ</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NZvNED?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NZvNED</a> <a href="https://t.co/E5XzkjNrue">pic.twitter.com/E5XzkjNrue</a>&mdash; BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) <a href="https://twitter.com/BLACKCAPS/status/1503763528121032706?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 15, 2022</a></blockquote>Earlier last September, the all-rounder Bracewell had declined an opportunity to be part of New Zealand&rsquo;s away squad for the Bangladesh tour, citing the birth of his first child. However, now the 31-year-old has been picked in both squads, as Cleaver has been picked for just the one-off T20I encounter.&nbsp;&quot;Both players (Cleaver and Bracewell) have been on the national radar for some time and certainly deserve their selection off the back of another quality domestic season. Michael is a superb ball striker who can mix touch with his power, while his right arm off-breaks are an asset to any side,&rdquo; Stead added.However, Cam Fletcher, who earlier made the wave with his performance in the Super Smash continues to be ignored for a national call-up, with Cleaver edging him in the squad. &nbsp;&ldquo;Dane, along with Cam Fletcher, has been the stand-out wicket-keeper-batsman of the Dream11 Super Smash in recent years. We felt Dane&#39;s consistent weight of runs and the role he can play at the top of the order gave him the slight edge.&quot;Henry Nicholls and Kyle Jamieson find themselves in the ODI squad while Ben Sears and Scott Kuggelejin make the cut for the shorter format. The three-match ODI series will also be veteran Ross Taylor&rsquo;s final appearance in the 50-over format for the BlackCaps, with the right-hander having retired from the longest format earlier.&nbsp;Squad:Tom Latham (C), Doug Bracewell, Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Dane Cleaver (T20I only), Colin de Grandhomme, Martin Guptill, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson (ODIs only), Scott Kuggeleijn (T20I only), Henry Nicholls (ODIs only), Ben Sears (T20I only), Ish Sodhi, Ross Taylor (ODIs only), Blair Tickner, Will YoungPowered by <a href="https://www.froala.com/wysiwyg-editor?pb=1" title="Froala Editor">Froala Editor</a>

With as many as 12 Kiwi players going to the IPL, a depleted squad will face Netherlands

dane cleaver

Thakur, Bawa help India A complete 3-0 whitewash over New Zealand A

New Zealand’s European tour unearths long-term prospects

Dane Cleaver shines as New Zealand secure T20I series win over Ireland

Jamieson, Fletcher ruled out of England tour; Tickner & Cleaver added to the squad

Bracewell, Cleaver earn call-ups in Tom Latham’s depleted squad