New Zealander hadn’t opened in T20s before this week, now he’s put India on the brink
Twenty of the 22 players involved in India vs New Zealand in Dubai have played in the world’s premier franchise league but the highest-scoring batter’s overseas T20 experience extends to half a season in the Vitality Blast for Middlesex.
But their management saw something in Mitchell’s straightforward technique and ability to hit sixes – no-one has hit more in their domestic tournament, the Super Smash, since the start of 2016 – and recognised that exploiting the fielding restrictions would be crucial on slow pitches. After a brief trial in the warm-up games, he was backed to open against Pakistan in Sharjah and showed enough signs in an innings of 27 off 20 balls – featuring sixes off Hasan Ali and Imad Wasim – to keep his place ahead of Seifert when New Zealand opted to bring in an extra batter.
Within the space of three shots, any pretence of scoring pressure had been removed. The rest of the innings was a cruise, and he seized upon Mohammed Shami and Shardul Thakur when they erred in length, both too short and too full. He fell one short of a first T20I half-century, foxed by Bumrah’s cutter, but had effectively sealed the win long before; that he hit more sixes in 35 balls than India did in 120 told the story of the game.
“It’s a huge testament to his character, and the backing he’s receiving from our camp, who believe in his ability immensely. It was never going to be an easy chase – they were always going to come out, be aggressive with the ball. The conditions, we didn’t quite know how they were going to play, [but] the way that he played that game was definitely the icing on the cake.”
Mitchell’s promotion to open the batting in this tournament was a calculated gamble, but appears to be paying off: if he can lead New Zealand into the semi-finals at India’s expense, it will begin to look like a masterstroke.
Matt Roller is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo. @mroller98