Franklin hits unbeaten 72 as New Zealand make 224/9

VADODARA - James Franklin scored an unbeaten 72 as New Zealand made 224 for nine after a poor start against India in the third One-Day International at the Reliance Stadium here Saturday.

New Zealand were 106 for seven in the 30th over and Franklin led the fight-back with a gutsy innings and also shared a crucial 94-run stand for the eighth wicket with Nathan McCullum (43) in a must-win match for the visitors. India have a 2-0 lead in the five-match series.

The left-handed Franklin walked in at 49 for four in the 16th over and played a sensible innings even as he saw wickets tumbling at the other end in regular intervals. Franklin hit five fours and one six in 108 balls while McCullum struck four fours in his 53-ball knock.

Opener Martin Guptill (12) and Scott Styris (22) were the other two batsmen who could get to double figures after New Zealand were asked to bat.

For India, Zaheer Khan (2/31), Yusuf Pathan (2/37 and R. Ashwin (2/49) shared six wickets among them while Munaf Patel got one.

The pitch, which offered extra bounce for the pacers and some turn for the tweakers, came in as a surprise for the New Zealand batsmen.