Santner took 4 for 21, and New Zealand’s dropped catches let Tilak Varma chase down 181 in Christchurch
Tilak Varma’s unbeaten 51 off 26 and an unbroken stand of 69 with Nitish Kumar Reddy took India from 70 for 5 to a four-wicket win and a 2-0 series lead.
Oct 24, 2026
Mitchell Santner was under observation before this game after landing on his head in the first T20I. He played, bowled his four overs for 21 and took four wickets, and New Zealand still lost. India chased 181 at Hagley Oval with a ball to spare on Saturday night to win by four wickets and go 2-0 up in the five-match series.
The difference was in the field. New Zealand dropped three of India’s batters and a no-ball reprieved a fourth, and the most expensive of those misses came when the game was nearly theirs.
Santner’s four, and the catch Jacobs dropped
India were 70 for 5 in the 11th over. Santner had bowled Shreyas Iyer with one that drifted, Abhishek Sharma had gone for 27 to a sharp catch by Nathan Smith at deep midwicket, and Axar Patel had picked out long-on, where Finn Allen and Daryl Mitchell took the catch between them.
At the start of the 13th over, Naman Dhir hit Santner straight to Bevon Jacobs at backward point. Jacobs dropped it. Santner kept attacking, and Dhir hit him for a huge six later in the over, then took a six and a four off Michael Bracewell’s last over. Santner got him in his last over, caught by Glenn Phillips for 31 off 17 balls, but India were back in range.
Santner finished with 4 for 21. India still needed 69 off the last 31 balls on a used pitch, and New Zealand were favourites.
Tilak and Reddy finish it
India have given up some bowling to bat this deep, and this was the night it paid. Tilak Varma and Nitish Kumar Reddy put on an unbeaten 69 for the seventh wicket. With three overs left, Reddy went after a slower-ball half-volley from Jacob Duffy and Tilak followed with two fours.
Tilak had some luck in the 19th over, an edge off a ramp and then a misfield by Phillips in the deep, before he cleared the cover boundary on the bigger side. That left 11 for the last over. Duffy bowled it well, and with New Zealand forced to keep an extra fielder inside the circle for a slow over rate, it was not enough. Tilak finished on 51 not out off 26 balls and was player of the match. Reddy made 26 not out off 13.
New Zealand were a bowler short by then. Matt Henry started the chase with a maiden to Sanju Samson, but he had spent too long off the field to be allowed to bowl again and finished with two overs.
Phillips had given New Zealand enough
Iyer won the toss and chose to chase on the pitch used for the first T20I. It was harder to score on this time. Arshdeep Singh had Tim Seifert caught by Tilak in the second over, Bhuvneshwar Kumar beat Mitchell with a knuckle ball, and Prince Yadav bowled Allen with a full inswinger. New Zealand were 41 for 3 after 5.2 overs.
Phillips rescued them. He was slow to start and then took on Axar, and he and Jacobs added 116 for the fourth wicket. Phillips made 70 off 43 balls with four sixes, and Jacobs 58 off 46. Arshdeep removed Phillips in the 18th over to finish with 2 for 33, and Bracewell’s 10 off two balls took New Zealand to 180 for 5.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi came into the side for the injured Ishan Kishan and batted at No. 3. Jacobs lost a simple chance off him at backward point, and he was out soon after for 4 off 8 balls.
Wellington next
The third T20I is in Wellington on 27 October. New Zealand have now lost two games in which they made 225 and 180, and the second one was there to be won. India can take the series with two games to spare.