New Zealand vs India, NZ vs IND, Today Match Prediction 20 November 2022

nz vs ind Match Prediction & Analysis

After the 1st T20I in Wellington was abandoned due to rain, all eyes are on the weather forecast for Mount Maunganui. Some of India’s squad members have fond memories of playing U19 cricket in New Zealand. 

And they were excited to be part of the national team on a limited-overs tour of the island nation under new leadership. Washington Sundar is coming back from an injury and will be eager to make his mark in the T20I side as an all-rounder.

Williamson, the home team skipper was dealt with some bad news on the personal front as Sunrisers Hyderabad released him from the squad for the upcoming IPL season. 

What’s even more worrying for the Blackcaps captain is that two of his key T20 players, Boult and Neesham, rejected the central contracts to prioritize franchise cricket. 

There is one exciting match-up to look forward to in the 2nd T20I. The left-arm orthodox bowler, Mitchell Santner has dismissed Sanju Samson twice in just 7 balls that he’s bowled to the RR captain in this format.

TEAMS PREVIEW

New Zealand Preview

The hosts will be disappointed after the opening game of the series was washed out without a ball bowled. A T20I series win at home would be a consolation for the semi-finalists who were knocked out by Pakistan. 

Not only were Williamson’s men brilliant in the Super 12s but were the favourites to reach the final. With only a few changes to the World Cup squad, the hosts will be looking to get themselves back to winning ways.

Though India’s top players have flown back post their World Cup exit, this squad isn’t any less competitive. The visitors have some of their best hitters coming to Mount Maunganui which has small boundaries.

Williamson is likely to include Blair Tickner in the XI for this T20I match. Southee can make things difficult for the Indian top order early in the innings. However, if Tickner and Milne aren’t disciplined with the ball in the latter half, the game can slip away with Indian batters clearing the boundaries at will.

Finn Allen, Glenn Phillips, and Daryl Mitchell will be the key batters for New Zealand. Though it is not a high-scoring venue, a few good knocks from these players can put NZ in a good position. 

And the reliable Williamson will be there as an anchor for the Kiwi innings in the middle order. Santner and Ish Sodhi can come into play as the game progresses with the pitch helping spinners.

New Zealand Predicted Playing XI:

Finn Allen, Devon Conway, Kane Williamson, Glenn Phillips, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Adam Milne, Lockie Ferguson, Blair Tickner

New Zealand Actual Playing XI:

Mitchell Santner, Devon Conway, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Finn Allen, Kane Williamson, Lockie Ferguson, Ish Sodhi, James Neesham, Tim Southee, Adam Milne

India Preview

Wellington would have been a great venue to kick things off for this new Indian side under a new leader. Mount Maunganui is known to favour teams batting first almost every time. 

And hence, losing the toss is likely to put the Indian bowlers under a bit of pressure. Bhuvneshwar Kumar will be crucial with the new ball at this ground as there is a lot of help for the swing bowlers. 

There would be a race to the playing XI between Umran Malik and Harshal Patel. Patel has found success in the death overs in IPL while Malik’s pace is his contention for the India berth.

Shubman Gill as an opener is almost a certainty while there are a few options for his opening partner. Ishan Kishan and Sanju Samson can both open the innings and are the top contenders for this position.

If Kishan opens alongside Gill, the number 3 spot would then be up for grabs for Samson. However, this squad also features Shreyas Iyer. Would Pandya go with Samson at number 3 over Iyer? If India are looking to revamp their T20I side and adopt a more aggressive approach, Samson would be the right choice.

They can have the cushioning of SKY, Pandya, and Pant in the middle order and allow Kishan and Samson to flourish in the early overs. Gill isn’t an aggressive batter but has been effective in building partnerships for the Gujarat Titans.

India Predicted Playing XI:

Shubman Gill, Ishan Kishan, Sanju Samson, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant, Washington Sundar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik

India Actual Playing XI:

Mohammed Siraj, YS Chahal, Shreyas Iyer, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rishabh Pant, Deepak Hooda, Washington Sundar, Arshdeep Singh

PITCH AND WEATHER CONDITIONS

Weather Conditions

The pitch offers help for the pacers and there is some movement off the surface for seam bowlers. New-ball bowlers can also expect swing in the early overs and spinners have been effective in ODIs. The weather forecast is for showers in Mount Maunganui on the match day. Fans would hope that these are just passing showers and we will have an exciting T20I.

Venue Details

The Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui has smaller boundaries and the top-order batsmen will be tempted to go for the maximum in the powerplay. The average 1st innings score here is 165 runs from 12 T20Is. A 170-175 runs total would be a match-winning score for the team batting first.

Toss: To Bat

Teams batting first have won 9 of the 12 T20Is played at the Bay Oval. Only once did a team manage to successfully chase down a target at this venue. The weather forecast for the match day isn’t great either and it will be in the best interest of both teams to have runs on the board.