India beat New Zealand by six wickets in the third T20I in Wellington and lead the five-match series 3–0, which means the series is won. Abhishek Sharma hit 113 off 38 balls with 11 sixes in a chase of 199 that took 13.2 overs. Also: Mitchell Starc's 20th Test five-for in Cape Town, Padikkal's 199 and a draw for India A, India women's third ODI today, and the IPL retention deadline.
1. India win the third T20I by six wickets and take the series 3–0
New Zealand made 198/3 in Wellington on 27 October, with Daryl Mitchell unbeaten on 89 off 52 balls. India chased it in 13.2 overs, with 40 balls to spare. Abhishek Sharma made 113 off 38 balls (9 fours, 11 sixes) and was Player of the Match. He and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (45 off 19) put on 133 for the first wicket in 7.1 overs. India have won all three games, so the five-match series is theirs with two to play. This was Abhishek's fourth T20I hundred; our scorecards to 25 October have him on three. India had also won the 2nd T20I in Christchurch.
2. The numbers: a 118/0 powerplay and Abhishek's third 11-six innings
India's 118/0 in the powerplay is the highest in men's T20Is. The previous best in our scorecards is 116/0 by Romania against Serbia in June 2021. Abhishek's 11 sixes make it the third time he has hit 11 or more in a T20I innings for India: 13 against England in February 2025, 11 against Afghanistan in September 2026 and now 11 in Wellington. No other Indian in our scorecards has hit more than 10 in an innings (Samson, Tilak, Ishan Kishan and Rohit Sharma each have 10). His strike rate in the innings was 297.4 (113 off 38).
3. Starc takes 6/72 as South Africa fall from 203/1 to 329 all out
In the third and final Test at Newlands, Mitchell Starc took 6/72, including four wickets in six balls, after South Africa had reached 203/1. It is his 20th Test five-wicket haul (our 26 October snapshot has him on 19) and takes him to 457 Test wickets, from 451 before the match. The series is level at 1–1, so this Test decides it. Australia bat on day two today.
4. Padikkal's 199 ends in a draw: India A one wicket short
Devdutt Padikkal made 199 as India A recovered from 113 to 516 in the first unofficial Test in Lincoln, and set New Zealand A 313 to win. Bad light ended the match with New Zealand A on 187/9, Curtis Heaphy unbeaten on 90, so India A finished one wicket from victory. It follows yesterday's note, which had India A 284 ahead.
Also
India women are 2–0 up in the ODI series against Zimbabwe after wins by nine wickets (1st ODI) and 121 runs (2nd ODI). The third ODI is today in Vadodara, at 2 PM IST. For the IPL, the deadline for teams to submit their retained players is 15 November, and the auction is on 16 December in Goa.
Read the previous note
Yesterday's note: Padikkal 199 puts India A 284 ahead; India eye NZ series.
The figures behind the infographic
| Statistic | Abhishek Sharma (T20Is) | Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (T20Is) | Mitchell Starc (Tests) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matches | 70 | 10 | 110 |
| Runs | 2240 | 295 | 2516 |
| Highest | 135 | 81 | 99 |
| Hundreds | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Wickets | 12 | 0 | 457 |
| Best bowling | 3/17 | - | 7/58 |
Compare two international careers · Abhishek Sharma (T20Is) profile · Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (T20Is) profile · Mitchell Starc (Tests) profile · Create your own visual
News items come from the day's cricket reports. Scores appear only when two independent scorecards or reports agree, or a report matches Crickrida's data. The Wellington, Cape Town and Lincoln results are from 27 October and are not yet in our scorecards, which run to 25 October. Records and comparisons (hundreds, sixes in an innings, the powerplay record, Starc's earlier five-wicket hauls) are checked against Crickrida's data. The table adds the 27 October matches to Crickrida's 26 October career snapshot: Abhishek 2,127 + 113 runs and 3 + 1 hundred, Sooryavanshi 250 + 45 runs, Starc 451 + 6 wickets and 109 + 1 Test. Fixture details reported by only one source are left out. Strike rate = runs ÷ balls × 100.