India beat New Zealand by five wickets in rain-hit Eden Park ODI

India won the first ODI against New Zealand at Eden Park by five wickets on the DLS method, chasing down a rain-revised target in Auckland on Wednesday, but they made harder work of it than the scoreboard had promised an hour earlier.

Set to make their runs in 32 overs after the rain break, India reached 143 for 5 in 22.4 overs, with more than nine overs to spare. The win gives them a 1-0 lead in the five-match series.

How the match turned

New Zealand, put in after India won the toss, were bowled out for 185 in 40.2 overs. India’s bowlers, helped by Rohit Sharma’s diving run-out of Daryl Mitchell, kept the home side from ever building a platform, and a modest chase of 186 lay ahead.

Rain then took over. Play stopped with India on 54 for 1, and when it resumed the innings had been cut to 32 overs. At 65 for 1 after 12.2 overs, needing 78 from 19.4 overs with nine wickets in hand, India looked set for a stroll.

The stroll became a scramble. India lost four wickets for 78 runs after that point, giving New Zealand’s bowlers a sniff of an upset that a bigger target might have turned into a real contest. In the end the asking rate never climbed high enough to matter, and India crossed the line in the 23rd over.

First ODI at a glance

• 185 New Zealandall out in 40.2 overs
• 32 overs India's reduced inningsafter the rain break
• 143/5 Indiain 22.4 overs
• 5 wickets MarginDLS method

What it means

For India, a win is a win, and a bowling performance that rolled New Zealand over inside 41 overs on their own ground is the larger positive. The wobble in the chase is the point captain Shubman Gill and his batters will want to look at before the second game, because a full 50-over target would leave less room for loose shots.

New Zealand will take heart from the way they hit back with the ball late in the chase, but 185 was never enough on a ground with short boundaries. Their batters, not their bowlers, are the ones under pressure.

The series moves to Wellington for the second ODI on 7 November, with India 1-0 up.