India crushed New Zealand in the T20I and ODI series prior to the start of the much-awaited Tests vs Australia. To add more, while the Men in Blue won the ODIs 3-0, the Hardik Pandya-led T20I setup won the series 2-1 and continued their momentum from the series against Sri Lanka played earlier in January this year.
That being said, when it comes to the knockouts, irrespective of the sports, New Zealand have always been trouble for India and they ended the World Cup hopes when the Virat Kohli-led team competed against them in the semi-finals in 2019. Much to the surprise of the Indian fans, it was the Black Caps who knocked the Bharat Army out of the FIH Hockey World Cup 2023 in the crossover match.
Former Indian opener Virender Sehwag took to Twitter and asked what scares people the most. In return, a fan replied that the Kiwis scare him the most and to his surprise, he received a reply from the right-handed batter. “Haan yaar, maasoom se hain but Knockout mein bada bura karte hain hamaare saath (Yeah man. They're nice but they treat us really badly in knockouts!)” Sehwag wrote as he came up with his usual savage wit.
Here is Virender Sehwag’s savage reply:
Haan yaar, maasoom se hain but Knockout mein bada bura karte hain hamaare saath
— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) February 4, 2023
I'm happy for all of them: Hardik Pandya
The T20I series ended with the final game played on February 1, Wednesday and it was the Men in Blue who created history after crushing Mitchell Santner-led team by 168 runs, as they restricted the Black Caps to just 66 in a chase of 235. Post the conclusion of the game, skipper Pandya opened up on the win and claimed that he was happy for the entire team.
“I don't mind winning (man of the series award), but there were so performances here that were exceptional. This Man of the Series and trophy goes out to the whole support staff, I'm happy for all of them. (On doing things out of the box) Not to be honest, I always play the game like this. I try to read what is required, not have preconceived ideas. In my captaincy, I look to keep it simple and back my gut. I have a simple rule - if I go down, I will go down on my terms. We've spoken about taking challenges,” Pandya was quoted as saying in the post-match presentation.
Here’s how fans have reacted to the reply from Virender Sehwag to a fan who claimed New Zealand team are the ones that scare him the most:
Na Na U-19 Women's Cricket team sikha degi ladko ko
— KRUPA (@Krupa24011) February 4, 2023
Sab ka badla lega Phaijjal !!! @ShubmanGill pic.twitter.com/asJcObb5c8
— Om🇨🇦🇮🇳🇦🇪 (@DelhiCapitalsOm) February 4, 2023
yeh to aussie & paki players ko pta hoga jb ap batting krte the
— Kushal (@Kushal_mike) February 4, 2023
😂😂😂😂😂
— ali anwar (@alianwa64140235) February 4, 2023
Maasoom se hain 😢 https://t.co/vWKKxfSoYr
— r ★ (@itzzRashmi) February 4, 2023
Aaphi koi tips dijiye NZ ko harane ka aap se to sabhi bowlers darte Hain sir#viru10000times https://t.co/kQz0LMCUcv
— Anil Kumar Yadav (@AnilKum92596006) February 4, 2023