Wellington: They have hit the homestretch of a memorable three-month tour and a rampant India will be fancying another series win when they clash with under pressure hosts New Zealand in the opening T20 International of the three-game series here Wednesday. The Men in Blue have not lost a T20 series in the last three years and also have the chance to emulate arch rivals Pakistan who did not lose 10 T20 series on the trot.
Pakistan’s winning march came to a halt in their ongoing series in South Africa. On the other hand, India this year have played two T20 series against South Africa and England and have won both.
However, it remains to be seen how much gas the Indians have in their tank before they embark on the last few competitive matches of the trans-Tasmanian tour.
“We too are humans and our bodies need a bit of rest. Of course, we would be looking to the win the series and carry the momentum back home for the Australia series,” opener Shikhar Dhawan said on the eve of the game.
This T20 series will be crucial as India would look to finalise the 15 for the World Cup. The cynosure of all eyes will certainly be Rishabh Pant who returns to the team after India’s historic Test win against Australia.
Following the high of the Test series Down Under, another stellar showing might just convince the selectors to include Pant in the final-15.
The series is also an opportunity for Dinesh Karthik, who has done well as a finisher but is still not a sure starter in the XI. Ambati Rayudu grabbed his chance with a match-winning 90 in the fifth ODI, probably enough to seal a place in the middle-order.
Besides Pant, the others who have joined the team are spin all-rounder Krunal Pandya and Punjab pacer Siddharth Kaul.
New Zealand will be desperate to turn things around after a 1-4 drubbing. They do hold an upper hand over India in the shortest format. They beat India 2-0 in the 2008-09 in the sole bilateral series played, New Zealand soil till date.
The Black Caps edged the sub-continental side 1-0 in a two-match away series in 2012 before losing 1-2 in India in 2017-18.
Agencies