Virat Kohli and Co. last played against New Zealand in the semi-final of the World Cup 2019. Now, after six months, India and Kiwis face-off each other but this time on the Black Caps’ shores. Notably, the New Zealand series will be the first away tour of 2020 for India.
In the home season, the Men in Blue have had a great run across every format. Even against the tough competitor Australian, India had made a strong comeback winning the ODI series 2-1.
Now, India will start the tour of New Zealand with the T20I series. It will be interesting to see how the Virat Kohli’s army will fight against the competitor that ended their dreams in World Cup 2019.
Date: 24/01/2019
Venue: Eden Park, Auckland
Shikhar Dhawan Injured; Sanju Samson recalled:
Earlier, in the second ODI match, Indian opener Shikhar Dhawan got hit in his rib-cage on the ball of the fast bowler, Pat Cummins. Though he recovered ahead of the last ODI match.
The southpaw again injured himself during the series decider against Australia. He injured his shoulder while fielding which led his ouster from that game.
Eventually, he has been ruled out of the New Zealand tour. His ouster has given a place to the wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson in the T20 squad. Though he might not get the place in the final XI.
Also, KL Rahul might play the role of an opening batsman with Rohit Sharma.
Kiwi’s experienced fast bowler injured:
After recovering from injury, the New Zealand premier pacer Trent Boult had made the comeback in the team against England. He then toured with the team to play the Test series against Australia. Unfortunately, he again picked-up a side strain which led his ouster from the Test series. Now, he has been ruled out of the T20I series.
Head to Head
| Team | Total | Won | Lost | No result/Tied |
| New Zealand | 11 | 8 | 3 | 0/0 |
| India | 11 | 3 | 8 | 0/0 |
Weather forecast
It will be a clear sky in Auckland though the wind will pose more challenge to Indian batsman. No rain is expected on Friday during the match. The humidity will be quite high as well. A slightly cloudy with the temperatures being in the range of 17-25°C is expected.
Pitch Condition
The Eden Park assist the fast bowler which will get the batsmen in trouble. The extra bounce from the pitch will surely be enjoyed by the batsman.
On this pitch, the ball comes nicely on to the bat and wonderful strokeplay will be witnessed.
India’s Predictable XI:
| Players | Role |
| Rohit Sharma | Opening Batsman |
| KL Rahul | Opening Batsman |
| Virat Kohli (c) | Batsman |
| Shreyas Iyer | Batsman |
| Rishabh Pant | Wk-Batsman |
| Washington Sundar | Batsman |
| Ravindra Jadeja | Allrounder |
| Navdeep Saini | Bowler |
| Mohammed Shami | Bowler |
| Jasprit Bumrah | Bowler |
| Kuldeep Yadav | Bowler |
New Zealand’s Predicted XI:
| Players | Role |
| Martin Guptill | Opening Batsman |
| Colin Munro | Opening Batsman |
| Kane Williamson(c) | Batsman |
| Ross Taylor | Batsman |
| Tim Seifert | Wk-Batsman |
| Colin de Grandhomme | Allrounder |
| Daryl Mitchell | Allrounder |
| Mitchell Santner | Bowler |
| Tim Southee | Bowler |
| Hamish Bennett | Bowler |
| Ish Sodhi | Bowler |
Match Prediction:
After getting into a tough fight against Australia, India will be confident over the win against Kangaroos at home. The Men in Blue have constantly gone with the same squad in the last T20I series. So, the batsman and bowlers will be acquainted with the jobs given.
While New Zealand didn’t have a good home season as they have consecutively lost the series against visitors. But the Kane Williamson and Co. could not be underestimated.
Where To Watch:
TV – Star Sports 1 and Star Sports 1 HD
Online– Hotstar
Time– 12:20 PM IST