New Zealand kept their five-match T20I series against India alive in emphatic style at Eden Park on Thursday, beating the visitors by 87 runs in the fourth match after Glenn Phillips smashed a match-winning century. The hosts posted 259 runs batting first before bowling India out for 172, ending India’s three-match winning streak and cutting the series lead to 3-1 with one match still to play.
Phillips was the difference between the sides. The middle-order batter hammered 107 runs from just 49 deliveries, an innings that powered New Zealand to a total India never looked like chasing. His performance earned him the Player of the Match award, and with it he equalled Martin Guptill’s record for the most Player of the Match awards by a New Zealand player against India in T20I cricket.
Key Takeaways
- Glenn Phillips scored 107 off 49 balls as New Zealand posted 259 at Eden Park, Auckland.
- India were bowled out for 172, giving New Zealand an 87-run win in the fourth T20I.
- Phillips equalled Martin Guptill’s record for most Player of the Match awards for New Zealand against India in T20Is, and he leads the series with 276 runs.
Phillips turns the match with a 49-ball century
New Zealand came into the match with the series already gone, 3-0 down after three straight defeats, and needing a win simply to stay in the contest. What followed was their most complete batting performance of the series. Phillips led the charge, and he was supported by a strong showing from Michael Bracewell as the Black Caps piled up 259 runs in their innings.
Phillips later described his own performance as fabulous, and it is hard to argue with that assessment. A century from 49 balls in a must-win match, against a side that had won the first three games of the series, changed the shape of the contest in a single innings. India, chasing a target of 260, were eventually dismissed for 172, well short of the mark, as New Zealand claimed their first win of the series.
Phillips hammered 107 runs from just 49 deliveries, an innings that powered New Zealand to a total India never looked like chasing.
A series-leading run, built on IPL lessons
Phillips has been the standout batter of the series. His century in Auckland took his tally to 276 runs from four matches at an average of 92, including one century and two fifties, putting him clear at the top of the series run charts. He has now scored heavily in every match of the series, and his form has been the one constant for New Zealand.
After the match, Phillips credited his time in the Indian Premier League for shaping his game. He played only six matches for Gujarat Titans during IPL 2026, scoring 67 runs with a highest score of 25, but he said the experience of working with the franchise’s facilities and coaches, and of learning in that environment, had helped him develop as a batter. It is a striking detail: a player who barely featured in the IPL this year is now dominating a series against India, and he puts much of that down to what he picked up there.
India captain Shreyas Iyer spoke after the defeat about what went wrong for his side, as the visitors were left to reflect on a rare off day in a series they had controlled until Auckland. India had won the first three matches, and the defeat does not change their series lead, but it does change the mood going into the finale.
- New Zealand scored 259 batting first at Eden Park, Auckland, on October 30.
- India were bowled out for 172 in reply, losing by 87 runs.
- Glenn Phillips scored 107 off 49 balls and was named Player of the Match.
- Phillips leads the series with 276 runs from four matches at an average of 92.
- The five-match series now stands at 3-1 to India, with the final match in Hamilton on November 1.
What the result means for the series
The win matters for more than pride. A 4-0 scoreline would have left the final match as a dead rubber; instead, the series goes to Hamilton alive, with New Zealand chasing a second straight win and India looking to reassert the dominance they showed in the first three games. The sides meet again at Seddon Park in Hamilton on November 1 for the fifth and final T20I.
For New Zealand, the Auckland win also breaks a pattern. India had already made history earlier in the tour, becoming the first team to 200 T20I wins with their four-wicket victory in Christchurch. They had been outplayed in the opening three matches, and a series whitewash was a real possibility before Thursday. Phillips’ century, backed by the rest of the batting order, showed that the gap between the sides is not as wide as the first three results suggested. For India, the defeat is a reminder that even a 3-0 lead does not guarantee a clean sweep, and that a single explosive innings can undo a disciplined bowling effort.
The result also underlines how much of this series has revolved around one player. Phillips has now passed fifty in three of the four matches, and his 276 runs are the most by any batter in the series. India will know that stopping him in Hamilton is the first step to closing out the series with a win.
What to Watch Next
What to watch next is whether Phillips can continue his run in the series finale at Seddon Park in Hamilton on November 1, whether India can bounce back from their first defeat of the series, and whether New Zealand can turn one win into two and finish the series at 3-2. The other question is whether India’s bowlers can find a plan for Phillips, who has scored in every match so far, and whether the hosts’ batting can repeat its Auckland performance away from Eden Park.