Ish Sodhi sets new mark as Black Caps end Bangladesh tour with T20I win

Sunday, 3 May 2026

Ish Sodhi became New Zealand’s most prolific T20I wicket-taker during the game against Bangladesh in Mirpur.

Third T20I, Mirpur: Bangladesh 102 in 14.2 overs (Towhid Hridoy 33 from 24; Josh Clarkson 3-9 from 2, Ben Sears 2-12 from 2.2, Nathan Smith 2-14 from 2) lost to New Zealand 104-4 in 11.4 overs (Bevon Jacobs 62* from 31; Shoriful Islam 3-19 from 3) by six wickets. Full scoreboard

A landmark wicket for Ish Sodhi helped the Black Caps end their Bangladesh sojourn on a high.

Sodhi became New Zealand’s most prolific wicket-taking T20 international bowler during the side’s six-wicket win in the series-ending match in Mirpur on Saturday night (NZ time).

The seam department took most of the spotlight after the gloom of a thunderstorm cleared, allowing the tourists to dismiss Bangladesh for just 102 in 14.2 overs in the game reduced to 15 overs per side.

But the legspinner’s 165th T20I wicket pushed him past Tim Southee to top the table for NZ bowlers in the format, and behind only Afghanistan’s fellow leggie Rashid Khan (193) for all nations.

He did so with a full-toss which was reverse-lapped to Bevon Jacobs at deep point - such is the way of T20Is.

Nathan Smith had taken two wickets in consecutive balls early after NZ skipper Nick Kelly sent the hosts into bat, and Ben Sears mopped up the tail in the same fashion. In between, seamer Josh Clarkson took 3-9 from his two overs.

Left-arm quick Shoriful Islam gave the chasers a decent scare with three wickets in his first seven balls, but Jacobs gave a glimpse of why he’s still viewed as a potential first-choice white-ball batter with a stylish unbeaten 62 at a Strike Rate of 200.

That saw NZ level the series at one-apiece, after game two had been abandoned due to rain earlier this week.

The next international outing for the Black Caps will be a four-day test against Ireland in Belfast at the end of the month, ahead of a much-anticipated three-test series versus the Brendon McCullum-coached England throughout June.