Virat Kohli (115 not out) and Ajinkya Rahane (95) shared a 205-run third-wicket stand to guide India to a convincing seven-wicket win over New Zealand in their second one-dayer of the Emerging Players Tournament in Queensland on Friday.
After restricting the Kiwis to a modest 228 for nine wickets in their alloted 50 overs, India rode on Rahane (95 off 115 balls) and Kohli's (115 off 108) brilliance to romp home with seven wickets in hand, in 41.3 overs.
Kohli struck five boundaries and as many sixes in his breezy innings, while Rahane hit 10 fours and cleared the fence once.
Sent in to bat, New Zealand made an ominous start to their innings with left-arm pacer Pradeep Sangwan dismissing both the Kiwi openers -- Jeev Raval and Martin Guptil. Both were caught behind by Wriddhiman Saha leaving the Kiwis at 11 for two.
However, Peter Fulton (122 off 143 balls) and Kane Williamson (40 off 60) resurrected the New Zealand innings, stitching together a 116-run stand for the third wicket to lay the foundation for the 200-plus score.
Interestingly, Fulton failed to hit a single boundary, leave alone a six in his 122-run innings.
For India, Sangwan was the most impressive bowler, picking five wickets for 40 runs from his 10 overs, while all-rounder Abhishek Nayar chipped in with two wickets.
In reply, the opening pair of Rahane and Murali Vijay (2) started India's run chase on a cautious note.
However, India soon slumped to 25 for two after suffering twin blows in the form of Vijay and skipper S Badrinath, who failed to open his account.
But there was no further hiccups for India after that as both Kohli and Rahane blossomed in each other's company to ensure a comfortable victory for their side.
India lost to Australian Institute of Sports in their opening ODI.
