After the Indian batters led by Sanju Samson saved the day in a record chase of 226 in the first T20I against New Zealand, the visitors will be eyeing to extend their lead in the five-match series in the second game on Saturday at the Hagley Oval in Christchurch.
Chasing a huge total on bouncy New Zealand conditions, made it look easy with a half-century at the top, which also served as a perfect platform to step in for the likes of Abhishek Sharma, Naman Dhir and captain as India won the game with just two balls to spare.
However, Iyer’s major concern will be the bowlers, who need to fnd their rhythm and figure out a way to contain a rather destructive New Zealand batting line-up. The record chase of 226 gave the visiting team a crucial 1-0 lead but it also highlighted frailties that can cost the side heavily in the remainder of the five-match series.
The fifth and sixth bowling options have been a concern for India with the all-rounders not yet doing justice to those roles in the absence of an injury-prone . Nitish Reddy went wicket-less and leaked 40 runs in his four overs while Naman Dhir did not get to bowl before he produced a match-winning effort with the bat.
To compound India’s bowling woes, front-line bowlers too were at the receiving end in the series-opener. , bowling in his first India game in nearly four years, was not at his sharpest and leaked 49 runs in his full quota of overs.
Meanwhile, India will miss the services of wicketkepeer-batter Ishan Kishan, who has been ruled out of the second game due to a low-grade right adductor strain injury sustained during the first T20I against New Zealand.
“The Men’s Selection Committee has added Kumar Kushagra to the squad as cover for the second T20I,” the said in a statement. “Kushagra, who is currently in Christchurch with the India A squad, will join the India squad for the second T20I,” the statement added.
The injury to Kishan opened the doors for 15-year-old , who has been warming the benches since the series against Zimbabwe. Samson was preferred over Sooryavanshi.
India enjoy a 18-11 head-to-head record against New Zealand in T20Is out of the 32 games played between the two nations. Three games ended in ties. On New Zealand soil also India hold a slight 6-4 advantage over the hosts in 13 games played. Three games ended in ties.
Sony Sports Network has the broadcast rights of the India vs New Zealand T20Is series for Indian audiences. The India vs New Zealand 2nd T20I will be telecast live on Sony Sports channels in English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Kannada and new Tamil entertainment channel Sony VIZHA. Live streaming of India vs New Zealand 2nd T20I will be available on SonyLIV.
India: Sanju Samson (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi/Shivam Dube, Shreyas Iyer (C), Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Naman Dhir, Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, Mayank Yadav
New Zealand: Tim Seifert (wk), Finn Allen, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Bevon Jacobs, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner (c), Nathan Smith, Adam Milne, Matt Henry, Lockie Ferguson
