At Eden Park in Auckland on Wednesday, November 4, Arshdeep Singh delivered a back-of-a-length ball that Henry Nicholls pulled straight into the hands of Naman Dhir at mid-wicket during the third delivery of the ninth over. The New Zealand batter, who had managed nine runs off 11 deliveries with two boundaries, departed cheaply. Singh's second wicket of the match sparked an animated celebration that caught attention for its personal significance rather than routine on-field exuberance.

The Indian pacer's energetic response to the dismissal was rooted in something deeply personal. The left-arm pacer later explained that the dance steps he performed were a shared gesture with his girlfriend, Samreen Kaur, an actress and model based out of Punjab. Arshdeep and Samreen are close to each other and the on-field celebration reflected the moment of connection even as the two are not together.

"That celebration is for my girlfriend. We do these dance steps when we're out walking or something like that. Whenever the mood is a little low, we cheer each other up with that celebration. So this was for her," Arshdeep said between innings on air.

How did Arshdeep Singh fare in the first ODI?

Arshdeep was the wrecker-in-chief with the ball for the Men in Blue as they were without Mohammed Siraj in the all-important series opener. Arshdeep led the pace attack and made an instant impact, as he first affected the departure of opener Will Young. Nicholls became his second victim of the day as the opening spell bought the Indian on the frontfoot.

Arshdeep's early bloods did not allow the BlackCaps to enforce a comeback in the match. During his later spell, the youngster sent back Glenn Phillips and Kyle Jamieson.

"Loving the weather here and there is good purchase off the surface. After coming from the subcontinent, when you get some life in the wickets, it's always a pleasure to bowl here. And yeah, the wind is helping as well," the Guna-born expressed.

"I felt like there was something in the wicket, so we were just trying to hit the seam hard and try to get purchase off the surface. And they were trying some shots of that length, so we got the wickets," Arshdeep added.

Arshdeep ended with figures of 10-0-70-4. It was his second four-wicket haul in one-day internationals for India.