Allen demolishes helpless Scotland bowling attack with maiden T20I ton

With a belter of a pitch, and short boundaries on offer, there were plenty of runs scored in the first T20I. Finn Allen's blistering knock of 101 off just 56 balls proved to be the difference maker between the two sides. 

Allen oozes class in a defiant T20I ton

Allen smashed eight boundaries and cleared the fence on six occasions in his swashbuckling knock. The 23-year-old stitched an 85-run partnership with Martin Guptill for the first wicket. The latter seemed to struggle out in the middle, scoring an edgy 40 before being dismissed in the ninth over.

Runs came in plenty for the visitors through the middle overs, with Glenn Phillips and Daryl Mitchell playing short cameos. Allen held his ground on the other end, smashing the ball to all parts of the ground.

New Zealand set Scotland a lofty target of 226 runs in their first T20I fixture in the country. 

Sodhi bamboozles Scotland batting order as spin does the trick

Chasing such a huge total would always be an uphill battle for Scotland. It was imperative for the hosts to have a good start, which was to some extent provided by their openers.

George Munsey and Calum MacLeod stitched a partnership of 62 runs for the first wicket. However, they failed to have an impactful power play, as the openers had consumed a bit too many deliveries. 

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Ish Sodhi picked key wickets of Munsey and Scotland skipper Richie Berrington. He was assisted by left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner who picked up two wickets. The Scotland batting order had no reply to the visitors’ spin bowling wizardry, and kept losing their way.

Brief Scores:

New Zealand: 225/5 (20)
Finn Allen - 101 (56), Martin Guptill - 40 (31);
Richard Berrington - 1/13 (1), Hamza Tahir - 1/28 (3)

Scotland: 157/8 (20)
Calum MacLeod - 33 (24), Chris Greaves 31 (22);
Ish Sodhi - 4/28 (4), Mitchell Santner - 2/23 (4)

New Zealand won by 68 runs.