Chasing 334 for victory, India were bowled out for 89 in 28.3 overs, recording their second-heaviest defeat by runs in ODI history and their sixth-lowest total in the format.

Matt Henry produced a career-best six for 27, including three wickets in the opening over, as India's top order collapsed to zero for three.

Henry dismissed Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer with his first three deliveries, setting the tone for a rout that saw only three batters reach double figures.

Ishan Kishan top-scored with 27, while Axar Patel and Naman Dhir added 21 each in a brief 44-run stand that merely delayed the inevitable.

Earlier, Will Young anchored New Zealand's innings with 125 off 108 balls, his fifth ODI century and highest score, after being dropped twice in the second over.

Young shared 97 with Tim Seifert, who made 58, and 68 with Finn Allen, who contributed 41, lifting the hosts to 333 for six in their 50 overs.

For India, Axar Patel, Gurnoor Brar and Auqib Nabi claimed two wickets apiece, but the attack struggled to contain Young after his early reprieves.

The defeat is India's largest by runs since the 245-run loss to Sri Lanka in Sharjah in 2000, and follows a 2-1 ODI series defeat to England in July.

Head coach Gautam Gambhir said the batting fragility had been evident even in the narrow DLS win in the second ODI, when India slipped to 111 for seven chasing 135.

"There's no benefit to sweeping it under the carpet. It isn't just this match. Even in the previous match, we were seven down for 111 or 112," Gambhir said.

"Yeah, it's a huge defeat, no doubt about it, but even in the previous match, if you're chasing 135, and you get seven down for 111, obviously it is a bit of a concern," he added.

India were without regular captain Shubman Gill and senior batter KL Rahul, both rested to prepare for the two-Test series that begins in Wellington on November 19.

The pair will also miss Sunday's series decider at the same venue, where New Zealand will aim to draw the series after losing the preceding T20I series 3-2.

The third ODI in the series was abandoned without a ball bowled due to rain.

In the opening match in Auckland, India chased a revised target of 143 in 32 overs with Kohli unbeaten on 74 and Gill 37, though Rohit Sharma fell for a duck.

The second ODI in Wellington saw India scrape a four-run DLS win after being set 135 in 26 overs, with Shreyas Iyer top-scoring with 30 and Rahul unbeaten on 26.

New Zealand's victory ends India's streak of overseas ODI series wins and gives the hosts a chance to share the trophy in the final match.

The two-match Test series follows the ODI leg, with the second Test scheduled for Christchurch from November 27.

Brief scores: New Zealand 333-6 (50 overs; Young 125, Seifert 58, Allen 41; Axar 2-45, Brar 2-52, Nabi 2-58) beat India 89 (28.3 overs; Kishan 27, Axar 21, Dhir 21; Henry 6-27) by 244 runs.