After steamrolling the Kiwis in the ODI series 3-0, Team India find themselves in a very different situation in the T20I series. After a shock 21 run loss in the first game, the home team are on the backfoot and trailing the Kiwis 0-1.
The second and must win match for India will be played today in Lucknow.
India are the number 1 ranked T20I team in the world.
This is an ODI World Cup year, so the focus is largely on the 50 over game this year, but T20Is are always very exciting to watch and the fans are hoping for a great contest, despite the fact that some of the big names will be missing in both squads. For India, it's imperative to win to keep the series alive.
Ahead of the second T20I, here are all the big match details that you need to know:
What: India vs New Zealand, 2nd T20I
Where: Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow
When: January 29 (Sunday) - 7 PM IST
ICC T20I Team Rankings: India: 1st; New Zealand: 5th
Predicted Playing XIs:
India: Shubman Gill, Ishan Kishan (WK), Rahul Tripathi, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya(C), Deepak Hooda, Washington Sundar, Shivam Mavi, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik
New Zealand: Finn Allen, Devon Conway, Mark Chapman, Glenn Phillips (WK), Daryl Mitchell, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner(C), Blair Tickner, Ish Sodhi, Jacob Duffy, Lockie Ferguson
Big Talking Points:
- India are the Number 1 T20I team in the world and were the favourites in the first T201, but the Kiwi spinners choked the Men in Blue. A loss in today's match will mean NZ will wrap up the series
- The win in the first T20I in Ranchi was the first win for the Kiwis on this tour of India after being blanked 0-3 in the ODIs
- Finn Allen and Devon Conway's wickets early will be crucial for Team India. The openers gave the Kiwis a flying start in the first T20I
- For India, the top order wreaked havoc in the ODI series, but failed in the first T20I. Between Gill, Kishan and Tripathi, Team India scored a total of 11 runs.
- Though India have Prithvi Shaw in their squad, India are unlikely to make any changes at the top of the order
- Hardik Pandya is the India captain. Since the last edition of the T20 World Cup, last year, this is the third straight series Pandya is captaining India in
- No Rohit Sharma or Virat Kohli for this 3 match T20I series against the Black Caps
- Ruturaj Gaikwad has been ruled out of the series with a wrist injury
- For NZ, Michael Santer is donning the captain's hat. He had incredible figures of 2/11 in his 4 overs in the first match
- There is no Trent Boult or Tim Southee for the Kiwis
- 27 year old left arm pacer from Auckland Benjamin Lister is in line to make his debut, but the Kiwis are unlikely to change a winning combination
- Will Yuzvendra Chahal play today? There is realistically no one who can make way for him. Kuldeep was impressive in the first game with figures of 1/20
Best Thing to do after winning the toss: Bat first. All 5 T20Is played at this venue so far have been won by teams batting first. The Kiwis successfully defended 176 in the first game.
Pitch: Should favour the batters. Average first innings score around 172. Fast bowlers could make an impact in the initial overs.
Weather Conditions: Evening likely to be crisp and nippy. Minimum temperature in Lucknow is likely to be around 10 degrees celsius. No rain expected.
Full Squads:
India: Hardik Pandya (C), Suryakumar Yadav (VC), Ishan Kishan (WK), Shubman Gill, Deepak Hooda, Rahul Tripathi, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik, Shivam Mavi, Prithvi Shaw, Mukesh Kumar.
New Zealand: Mitchell Santner (C), Finn Allen, Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Dane Cleaver, Jacob Duffy, Lockie Ferguson, Ben Lister, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips (WK), Michael Rippon, Henry Shipley, Ish Sodhi, Blair Tickner.
Where to track: Catch live updates, ball by ball commentary, big talking points, match statistics and more on: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
Where to watch: Star Sports Network
Live Streaming: Disney+Hotstar
Full Schedule of India vs New Zealand T20I series:
First T20I: January 27, Ranchi - NZ won by 21 runs
Second T20I: January 29, Lucknow
Third T20I: February 1, Ahmedabad
India vs New Zealand overall T20I Head to Head:
Matches: 23
Won by India: 10
Won by NZ: 10
Tied: 3
NR: 0
India vs New Zealand T20I Head to Head in India:
Matches: 9
Won by India: 5
Won by NZ: 4
Tied: 0
NR: 0
