NEW DELHI: Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar expressed surprise at how convincingly New Zealand outplayed India in the second ODI in Rajkot, leaving the hosts little room to try out different team combinations ahead of the series finale.

Daryl Mitchell starred for the visitors with an unbeaten 131, guiding New Zealand to a comfortable seven-wicket victory over India while chasing 285. The series-deciding third ODI is scheduled to take place in Indore.

"I was surprised by how easily New Zealand got across the line because, before they started batting, everyone thought India would be able to make use of the slowness of the pitch," Gavaskar said on JioHotstar's 'Amul Cricket Live'.

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"With their (New Zealand) bowlers, not just the spinners, but all of them, using the slowness of the surface well, it felt like India would be able to restrict New Zealand to around 260 or 270. I thought that would have been an easy win for India," he said.

Gavaskar lauded the calm and calculated approach of Daryl Mitchell, who, alongside Will Young's 87, put together a commanding 162-run partnership that effectively put the match beyond India's reach.

"I think they showed how a near-300 run total can be chased down, by taking your time to settle in and then backing your stroke-making ability and running between the wickets," he said.

Gavaskar noted that India will face immense pressure in the series-deciding match, leaving little room to experiment. He added that a player like Yashasvi Jaiswal, who might have been considered for the Indore game under different circumstances, is unlikely to get an opportunity.

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"...had they won this game, they would have had the freedom to experiment a little, perhaps giving opportunities to those who haven't played so far. Someone like Jaiswal could have gotten a bit of a run as well.

"All of that might have been possible. But now they can't take any chances. They have to play their best eleven again."

Former New Zealand player Simon Doull lauded Mitchell for his knock and the manner he took down India's spin duo of Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja.

While Kuldeep went for 82 runs in his 10 overs managing to take just one wicket, Jadeja conceded 44 wicket-less runs in his eight overs.

"Mitchell's got some very good numbers against India...We see it time and again, the reverse sweeps, using his feet. Very early on against Kuldeep, he came down the wicket and put him under pressure in his first over. From that moment, Kuldeep lost his length slightly, which doesn't happen often.

"Even against Jadeja, he played him really well. The fact that he can come down the pitch, use his feet, hit over the top, or stay aggressive and play shots on both sides of the ground, with the reverse sweeps, the back-foot shots, everything in his armoury, shows his confidence," he said.

Doull agreed with Gavaskar that it is the hosts who would be feeling the heat in the decider.

"Of the two sides, New Zealand are the one not under pressure going into the final game. India generally respond pretty well to pressure; they still have key players in the side, and they know how to handle these situations," he said, striking a more optimistic note.

"They understand how to win game three or game five of a series when it's all levelled up. But New Zealand have nothing to lose. They have never won an ODI series in this country, so this would be a good time to start," he added.

(With PTI Inputs)