Australias one day captain Aaron Finch has become his countrys highest scorer in T20I cricket.
His innings on Friday in the fourth T20I took him past the record of David Warner, and he now has 2,310 runs from 70 matches, compared to Warners 2,265 runs accumulated in 81 games.
The only other two Australians who have scored more than 1,000 runs in T20Is are Glenn Maxwell, who has 1,779 runs, and the now retired Shane Watson with 1,462 runs.
Finch also became the first Australian batsman to hit 100 sixes in T20I cricket. He joins an exclusive club of five other men, which is headed by New Zealands Martin Guptill, who has 135 sixes to his name. Also on that list are Indias Rohit Sharma, Englands Eoin Morgan, another Kiwi, Colin Munro, and Chris Gayle of the West Indies.
It was a good day all round for Finch, who won the bat and chose to bat first, leading from the front with his 79 not out.
Many felt that the 156/6 that Australia made from their 20 overs was a sub-par score, but they bowled out New Zealand for just 106 to win by 50 runs.
That enabled them to draw level in the series, having lost the first two matches, and means that the final match will become the decider between the two sides.
It was not a good day for the home side. Guptill was out for just 7 and could not add to his tally of sixes in T20I cricket.
And fast bowler Tim Southee was handed a reprimand and had one demerit point added to his licence after he was found guilty of dissent. His public show of disapproval after he had an appeal against Finch turned down by the umpire for leg before earned him a trip to the match referees room after the play for the day had ended.
The final match in the series, and the decider, will be on the same ground in Wellington. New Zealand will be cheered by the news that fans will be allowed back for that match, after a temporary ban following a Covid outbreak has been lifted.
