Raipur: The 1st ODI was hard fought one for Team India as Michael Bracewell had almost pulled off a stunner from the mouth of what was a convincing win for the host. Moving into the 2nd ODI at Raipur, India will be expecting their pace attack to be more precise and economical in conceding runs. Indian middle-order also failed miserably to deliver in 1st ODI, which was completely overshadowed by Shubham Gill’s astonishing double-hundred.
The 2nd ODI will be the first match to be ever played at Raipur’s Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium. The venue is known to be neutral for batting and bowling. It is expected to provide seam movement for bowlers but traditionally has been more favourable for spinners. With both India and New Zealand counting on having a fair spin attack, the match is expected to turn like the ball. Any number is achievable in modern-day cricket but 300 plus will be considered a par score on Raipur’s pitch.
In form Gill and Kohli have been brilliant with the bat recently and the team will be relying immensely on the duo to play key roles in the 2nd ODI. Gill singlehandedly demolished the Kiwi bowling attack where the rest of the Indian batters were struggling to stay on the pitch.
Vice Captain Hardik Pandya is out of touch lately both with the bat and bowl. The all-rounder has been very expensive in the 1st ODI and was a subject of an unfortunate dismissal. Pandya will be looking to redeem himself in the 2nd game.
Ishan Kishan, the left-hander who had recently scored a double-hundred against Bangladesh in Chittagong will also be itching to make some runs with the bat and make the most out of the opportunity he is getting in absence of Rishabh Pant.
The main concern for Team India however will be their bowling attack as the team went completely clueless against Bracewell and Santner duo after a blistering start with the ball against New Zealand’s batting order.
New Zealand, on the other hand have a decent record against the Men in Blue in ODIs, and will come really hard on the host in the 2nd ODI to level the series up.
Finn Allen is in good shape and likely to continue the form through the series for the Kiwis. New Zealand is missing Kane Williamson as they require someone to anchor the middle-order during the middle overs of the innings that Kane did for years.
The bowling unit of Shipley, Ferguson and Ticker will be aiming to be more accurate along with their pace to not give the Indian batter the opportunity to capitalise on.
With the suspense on Ish Sodhi’s fitness, New Zealand will be completely dependent on Mitchell Santner to execute the spin duty.
Squads:
India: Rohit Sharma (captain), Shubman Gill, Ishan Kishan (wk), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, KS Bharat (wk), Hardik Pandya (vice-captain), Washington Sundar, Shahbaz Ahmed, Shardul Thakur, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Shami, Mohd. Siraj, Umran Malik.
New Zealand: Tom Latham (captain), Finn Allen, Doug Bracewell, Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Lockie Ferguson, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Henry Shipley, Ish Sodhi, Blair Tickner.