India newcomer wins Impact Player of the Series in NZ vs IND 2026 T20Is [Watch]
India all-rounder Naman Dhir was adjudged the Impact Player of the Series at the conclusion of the fifth T20I against New Zealand on Sunday, November 1.
India all-rounder Naman Dhir was adjudged the Impact Player of the Series at the conclusion of the fifth T20I against New Zealand on Sunday, November 1. The 26-year-old received the medal in the dressing room from strength and conditioning coach Adrian Le Roux.
In the clip shared on BCCI's social media accounts, Le Roux announced Dhir as the winner and he stepped forward through the group to collect it. As teammates pushed for a speech, Dhir thanked the squad, saying that winning a series away from home and then receiving the medal was satisfying. The BCCI caption described him as “the one who stepped onto the plate and took responsibility for the team.”
India won the series 3-2, taking the first three matches before New Zealand hit back in Auckland and Hamilton. At Seddon Park on Sunday, Tim Seifert's 93 off 50 deliveries and Glenn Phillips' unbeaten 38-ball 65 chased down 192 with 12 balls to spare. Phillips took the Player of the Series award with a record 341 runs.
How did Naman Dhir perform in the NZ vs IND 2026 T20I series?
Naman Dhir made 138 runs in five innings at a strike rate of 200, batting lower down the order, and finishing not out twice. Only Phillips (341), Abhishek Sharma (197) and Daryl Mitchell (176) scored more in the series.
The 42 not out from 15 balls in the first T20I at Hagley Oval was the innings that made his case. India were chasing 226, their highest successful T20I chase, and Dhir came in at No. 7 with 59 needed from 33 balls. The Punjab lad hit five fours and two sixes and sealed the four-wicket win with two balls left.
“He has played only four or five international games for India, yet he stepped up in a crucial situation, kept his composure under pressure and guided the team to a valuable victory,” Sanju Samson had said after the win.
Naman Dhir followed it up with 31 off 17 from 70 for 5 in the second T20I, then 28 off 13 and 33 off 23, the last of them part of India's 191 for 8 in Hamilton. His bowling went almost unused: two overs in the series.
There was one costly moment in the field on Sunday, when he dropped Seifert on 13 off Arshdeep Singh, and the Kiwi keeper went on to make 93. Dhir remains with the squad for the three ODIs, starting in Auckland on November 4.
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