India eye second consecutive T20I series in New Zealand as Napier gears up for the series finale

After an important win in the second T20I of the contest, the Men in Blue will be eyeing a crucial series victory that can allay the scars of the T20 World Cup as the series-finale looms at the McLean Park on Tuesday.

India started the series with a clinical victory, thanks to a blistering century from Suryakumar Yadav and some disciplined bowling that skittled out the Kiwi batters for a paltry 126. With the job half-done, the Men in Blue may resort to a few changes but all of it would be highly subjective, keeping in mind that the series needs to be won at every cost.

Given the depth of India's batting, Shubman Gill and Sanju Samson could not find a place in the eleven for the second T20I. There is also a high probability where the Indian unit may try and reunite the Kul-Cha pair after a decent display by the spinners in the second T20I.

New Zealand, on the contrary, will be hoping to get their Boult-less bowling back in shape in the absence of their captain Kane Williamson, in an effort to avert the Indian team from sealing a second consecutive T20I series on their turf.

With all said and done, another important factor that can intensify the frown on the visages of the hosts is the high probability of rain on Tuesday. As far as the weather predictions in Napier go, the chances of downpour are pretty much on the higher side towards the evening that may throw an unwanted spanner in what can be a crackerjack of a battle between India and New Zealand.

Venue Watch:

The venue hasn’t witnessed much T20I action with just 5 games played so far. The teams batting first have won twice while the teams chasing have secured 3 wins. However, the average score batting first is a staggering 171 while the average score chasing has so far been a modest 151. With the numbers pretty much on the higher side coupled with the explosive strikers of the cherry on both sides, a run-fest may very well be on the cards.

Head-to-head:

Matches played: 21

India: 10

New Zealand: 9

Match Details:

India vs New Zealand

McLean Park

22nd November 2022

12:00 PM IST

Squads:

India:

Hardik Pandya (c), Rishabh Pant (vc), Ishan Kishan, Shubman Gill, Deepak Hooda, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Sanju Samson, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshal Patel, Mohammed Siraj, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik

New Zealand:

Kane Williamson (C), Michael Bracewell, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Finn Allen, Devon Conway, Glenn Phillips, Lockie Ferguson, Adam Milne, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Blair Tickner.