Nagpur: Brimming with confidence, a well-settled Indian side will set their sights to clinch the silverware for second time when they face New Zealand in opening Super10s Group 2 encounter, here at Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium on Tuesday.
Ably-led by skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, India enter the global event as number one-ranked side in the bikini format after three back-to-back series victories. Without talisman Brendon McCullum, the Kiwis, on the other hand, stepped foot on Indian soil following impressive performances against Pakistan at home, where they won T20 and ODI series comfortably.
Momentum is paramount in this format and India, who start off as favourites, would love to get going on a winning note. The hosts are placed in tougher of the two groups alongside Australia, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
India will not tinker much with a well-settled line up that includes a ‘no vacancy’ sign plastered on the top order. Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma have provided ‘Men in Blue’ with explosive starts. Rohit showed his love affair with Eden Gardens against West Indies in first warm-up when he caressed an unbeaten 98* while Dhawan also became ‘wiser’ after his brisk 53-ball 73 runs against South Africa at Wankhede.
Averaging more than 50 in T20 format, swashbuckling batsman Virat Kohli is on a scoring spree of late. Kohli has struck four 50s in his last seven outings with an unbeaten 90 against Australia being the cherry on the cake. Suresh Raina has looked fiery and would want to up his average of 31.40 going into this match. Skipper Dhoni also has found his mojo after a brief lull, when he clobbered 20 runs from 8 balls in the Asia Cup finale. Yuvraj Singh has been scratchy but his presence alone can be convincing enough for an Indian win.
Spin twins Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja have been in the thick of things in India’s winning scripts. Both of them are capable enough to stem the flow of runs. Ashish Nehra’s comeback story was the turning point for India. Along with Jasprit Bumrah, and a little help from his multi-utility player, ‘Caribbean dude’ Hardik Pandya, Dhoni can rest be assured his bowling department does hold him in good stead.
A problem that would worry Indian think-tank would be the inclusion of Mohammed Shami after the Bengal pacer’s return post his lengthy injury spell. Shami's figures (4-0-30-2) against Windies highlights a sound return and only Nehra or Bumrah can possibly be dropped to take him in.
Placed fourth in the ICC T20 rankings, New Zealand cannot be underestimated and always seem to boost their performance to another level at the big stage. The 2015 ICC World Cup semifinalists can be seen as a dangerous side with wherewithal to beat any team on the given day.
The Blackcaps have won just 11 matches in five editions since 2007, which means Kane Williamson-led side will surely want to mend their performance graph. In Martin Guptill, Corey Anderson, Ross Taylor and Colin Munro they have big hitters who can swing the tide in their favour.
Williamson and his side showed what a terror they can be on the day when their batsmen eviscerated the Sri Lankan bowling attack in their first warm up to score a mammoth 226-4.
The pace department led by Tim Southee and Trent Boult will look to change the equation against India with pitch at Jamtha assisting seamers. Keeping in mind the spin friendly conditions, the Kiwis have included three tweakers in their line up — Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodi and Nathan McCullum.
With batting-friendly conditions, a run fest awaits fans at the 44,900 capacity stadium. If the Kiwis do manage to uproot the applecart of Dhoni’s team it will certainly give boost for the rest of the tournament. But a win in the sub-continent for the tourists will be difficult considering the herculean form Team India is in.
Match starts: 7.30 pm IST
Head to Head Record in T20Is
Total matches played: 5
India won: 0
New Zealand: 4
*match at Vizag on September 8, 2012 was abandoned without a single ball bowled.
