Matt Henry delivers Manchester deja vu in Mount Maunganui

He did it again! Once again! For the umpteenth time. Death, taxes and Matt Henry running through the Indian batting lineup are the only constants of the world. When New Zealand posted 333 on the board in the fourth ODI at Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui, Indian fans waited in excitement, expecting a big run chase and a belated Diwali gift in the form of pyrotechnics from Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli’s willows.

However, their old nemesis quietly stood at his bowling mark, waiting to wreak havoc and make his first impact in the series, having missed the first three matches due to a freak injury. The smiling assassin Matt Henry began his run-up as veteran India opener Rohit Sharma took guard to face the first ball.

The right-arm seamer didn’t waste any time in getting into a rhythm, finding the ideal length immediately. The first delivery landed right on the good length as if Henry had mapped the coordinates of the pitch inside his head.

Henry right on the money from first ball

The ball squared up Rohit, opening his front shoulder that got him into an awkward position, and he only managed to get an outside edge, which carried to Finn Allen at first slip. 

The Indian opener looked at the pitch in disbelief and slowly began trudging back to the pavilion for a golden duck. It was a dismissal reminiscent of his 2019 World Cup semi-final outing, where the same Kiwi star had got him out for just one in a tournament where he was at the peak of his powers, having plundered 648 runs.

Much to the delight of Indian fans, in walked Virat Kohli at number three to rousing applause, with the crowd waiting for another chasing masterclass from the cynosure of the Indian team. But Henry was far from done, hell-bent on emulating his new ball success from Manchester seven years ago. 

A perfect set-up for Kohli

He beat Kohli on the outside edge on his very first ball, pitching it up and inviting the star batter to unfurl his trademark cover drive. However, Kohli opted to defend it, only to get beaten. There was no respite for the world’s greatest batter as the following delivery was another length ball which was worked towards the on-side for another dot ball.

A shortish fourth delivery was awkwardly defended on the off-side, and Kohli looked far from comfortable, desperate to get his innings going. Out of nowhere, in came the surprise nip-backer, which caught Kohli off guard and dismantled his stumps.

The ball darted back in sharply after again pitching on good length and left India’s poster boy completely dumbfounded. Like Rohit, Kohli also gave a look at the pitch before taking the long walk back to the dressing room with a big round zero alongside his name.

And just like that, Henry continued to have the wood over two of the greatest white-ball batters in the world. Courtesy of his new-ball sorcery, both Kohli and Rohit were dismissed for ducks in an ODI game for just the second time after 2010.

While both stalwarts continue to be absolute nightmares for most bowlers in the world, Henry manages to cast a spell over the duo every time he comes across them. The New Zealand seamer has dismissed both batters thrice in his ODI career at an average of 19 runs per dismissal.

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma against Matt Henry in ODIs

Triple strike digs India's grave

But the over was yet to be completed, and next in was Shreyas Iyer, captaining India for the first time in ODIs, filling in for Shubman Gill, who had left the squad to prepare for the Test series.

Iyer was also given no time to breathe, welcomed with another in-seamer pitching on good length. The right-hander was caught at the crease, with the ghosts of New Zealand's short-ball ploy from the first two games still lingering in his head. The ball thudded into his pads, but umpire Kumar Dharmasena was unmoved. 

It took DRS to vindicate Matt Henry’s conviction as three reds on ball-tracking sent Iyer back into the pavilion for a golden duck. After the first over, India’s score read 0/3 for the first time in their ODI history.

And that was the match. Done and dusted in the first six balls, with India’s three senior-most batters back in the pavilion with no runs on the board.

A perfect warm-up for Henry ahead of Test series

The recovery from there was too far-fetched a dream, especially with Henry returning for his second spell to feast on the rest of the Indian batting. He finished with his career-best figures of 6/27 in 9.4 overs, also accounting for Ishan Kishan, Kuldeep Yadav and Gurnoor Brar afterwards.

India were skittled for 89, their second-lowest total against New Zealand and barely managed to evade their heaviest defeat in ODIs, losing by 244 runs (245 being the heaviest).

It was another new-ball masterclass from India's tormentor-in-chief, who had a perfect warm-up ahead of the all-important two-match Test series beginning on November 19.

Matt Henry’s record against India

Matt Henry’s memorable performances against India