For him, the boundary begins from 80m

Shivam Dube performed a stunning 65-run knock off simply 23 balls on the ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium, Visakhapatnam, on Wednesday in India’s fourth T20I of the continued sequence in opposition to New Zealand. After the sport, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) skipper Ajinkya Rahane gave an attention-grabbing perception in regards to the swashbuckling batter.

He revealed that Dube considers the boundary to be 80m throughout observe, which is the key to his big-hitting abilities. The southpaw smashed some big sixes within the fourth T20I, ending with seven maximums and an astonishing strike charge of 282.61.

Commenting on Dube’s massive sixes, Rahane mentioned on Cricbuzz:

“For him, the boundary begins from 80m; that is how he practices. I used to ask him what do you principally focus whereas hitting sixes. He mentioned I do know my sport. For me, the boundary begins after 80m.”

India discovered themselves in a precarious place after a batting collapse. They have been reeling at 63/4 in 8.4 overs when Dube walked out to bat. Rahane lauded the all-rounder for his sensible batting exploits underneath strain.

“Coming in that scenario and dominating from ball one. Towards spinners, everyone knows he is so harmful, hits the ball rather well. Towards quick bowlers as nicely, he was good. He was calculative, however his intent was actually good,” he added.

Dube’s blitz ended prematurely as he was run out on the non-striker’s finish within the fifteenth over. Matt Henry bowled a slower ball, which Harshit Rana hit straight again on the bowler.

The ball touched Henry’s hand and hit the stumps, catching Dube exterior the crease on the non-striker’s finish. The dismissal put New Zealand firmly within the driver’s seat, they usually finally gained the competition by 50 runs.

India have been bowled out for 165 whereas chasing a steep 216-run goal. Nonetheless, they got here into the encounter with a 3-0 unassailable lead. The Black Caps accomplished a comfort win and obtained some momentum on their facet forward of the upcoming 2026 T20 World Cup.

“I am nonetheless pleased with him” – Ajinkya Rahane not anxious about Sanju Samson’s dismissal in IND vs NZ 2026 4th T20I

The strain had mounted on Sanju Samson after three back-to-back failures (10, 6, and 0) within the sequence. The opener didn’t get an enormous rating underneath his belt within the fourth fixture as nicely, perishing for twenty-four off 15 balls.

Nonetheless, Ajinkya Rahane acknowledged that he was nonetheless fairly pleased with Samson’s effort. He remarked:

“The best way Sanju Samson began, I am nonetheless pleased with him. He obtained 15-ball 25. He regarded just a little out of contact, however he managed to get these 25 runs. I am nonetheless pleased with him.”

In the meantime, India gained the toss and elected to area first. Rahane recommended that Suryakumar Yadav and Co. ought to have thought of batting first. He talked about that it could have given the bowlers an opportunity to bowl within the dew, a scenario they may face within the 2026 T20 World Cup.

The 37-year-old added:

“The dew issue goes to be there in India. This was an important likelihood for the group to see how they bat first, after which how they defend the goal.”

The fifth and ultimate T20I of the sequence is about to be performed on the Greenfield Worldwide Stadium, Thiruvananthapuram, on Saturday, January 31.