'Monkey still on my back': Tim Seifert rues missed century, hails Glenn Phillips

NewsSports NewsCricket News'That monkey's still on my back': Tim Seifert rues missed century, hails Glenn Phillips' stunning form against India 'That monkey's still on my back': Tim Seifert rues missed century, hails Glenn Phillips' stunning form against India Edited by Hijam Raju Singh / TIMESOFINDIA.COM / Nov 01, 2026, 21:46 IST Tim Seifert came agonisingly close to ending his wait for a maiden international century, falling seven runs short after a blistering 93 in New Zealand's seven-wicket victory over India in the fifth and final T20I at Seddon Park on Sunday.

But while the opener was disappointed at missing out on the milestone, he was happier that New Zealand finished the series with a win, even if their late revival came too late to prevent India from clinching the series 3-2.Seifert, who had endured a difficult series with four successive single-digit scores, produced a stunning turnaround in the final match, smashing 93 off just 50 deliveries.

He was dropped on 13 before making India pay with an aggressive innings that put New Zealand firmly on course to chase down 192 in just 18 overs.However, his hopes of a maiden international hundred ended when he played a back-of-a-length delivery from Nitish Kumar Reddy onto his stumps, leaving him seven short of the landmark.

Watch Tim Seifert on New Zealand's comeback, India's bowling & Glenn Phillips' record breaking series Speaking after the match, Seifert joked that the wait for his first international century continued to weigh on him."No, look, the main thing is to win.

But at the same time, you know, that monkey's still on my back for getting my first International 100. So look, you're still a little bit devastated about that. And I think my shoulders and back are getting a bit heavier as well," he joked."But no, I think the main thing is winning.

And that's the great thing."But at the end of the day as well, you sometimes got to get over the line, especially because I haven't got one before. So yeah, hopefully it doesn't take another 95 games to get that opportunity.

But we'll see what happens," Seifert added.Seifert explains New Zealand's late turnaround While Seifert provided the fireworks in the final match, Glenn Phillips was the standout performer across the series. The middle-order batter finished with 341 runs, breaking Phil Salt's record of 331 runs for the most runs by a batter in a bilateral T20I series.Phillips' remarkable run included scores of 82 not out, 70, 17, 107 and an unbeaten 65 in the final match.

He also became one of only three batters to register four or more half-centuries in a bilateral T20I series.Seifert praised his teammate's consistency and the way he built his innings rather than going after the bowlers from the outset.Join conversation "You know, he's been playing unbelievably in all formats for New Zealand recently.

And credit to him. I think for us guys at the top as well, knowing that, you know, we bat all the way down that balance of our team."No matter who's coming in, you know, we just keep on attacking. And look, to break the highest ever in a five-match series, you got to take a hat off to him and say well played.

But just the way he went about his innings as well, he didn't necessarily come out all guns blazing at the start, got himself in and then picked up his match-ups throughout the innings. So yeah, credit to him," Seifert said.

Get the latest Sports News and Live updates. Download the TOI app. Hijam Raju Singh is an Assistant News Editor with The Times of India Digital, with more than 20 years of journalism experience, including over 18 years in sports journalism.

A graduate in Journalism and Mass Communication, he has been associated with The Times of India’s Digital Sports Desk for more than 18 years. He specialises in analytical, statistical and data-driven sports coverage, with a particular interest in cricket, football, tennis and Olympic sports.

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