Just before the World Cup, India and New Zealand will play a bilateral series against each other, which will consist of one T20I and five ODIs. The series will start with the one-off T20I which will be played at the John Davies Oval in Queenstown on February 9.
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Head to Head
India and New Zealand have played 12 T20Is against each other since 2009. New Zealand have dominated the duel winning eight matches, while India have managed to win just four.
Squads
India: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Shafali Verma, Yastika Bhatia, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh (wicket-keeper), Sneh Rana, Pooja Vastrakar, Meghna Singh, Renuka Singh Thakur, Taniya Bhatia (wicket-keeper), Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Poonam Yadav, Sabbhineni Meghana, Ekta Bisht, Simran Dil Bahadur
New Zealand: Sophie Devine (c), Amy Satterthwaite(vc), Suzie Bates, Lauren Down, Maddy Green, Brooke Halliday, Hayley Jensen, Fran Jonas, Jess Kerr, Melie Kerr, Frankie Mackay, Rosemary Mair, Katey Martin, Hannah Rowe, Lea Tahuhu
Players to watch out for
Smriti Mandhana:
The stylish southpaw who opens the batting for India won the ICC player of the year 2021. She has been in good form in the recent past and has the experience of playing in foreign conditions. She is just 29 runs away from completing 2000 T20I runs. She has featured in 84 T20Is for India and has 14 half-centuries to her name.
Poonam Yadav:
The loopy leg spinner is a genuine wicket-taker in the T20I format. She is just two wickets away from completing 100 T20I wickets. She has featured in 71 T20Is for India and has three four wicket hauls. She has an economy of under six and an average of 14.90.
Sophie Devine:
The captain of New Zealand is the world’s number one T20I all-rounder. The right-handed batter has over 2000 T20I runs, including one century and 15 half-centuries. With the ball, the right-arm seamer has 97 wickets and is the leading wicket-taker for the White Ferns in the T20I format.
Suzie Bates:
This right-handed batter of New Zealand is the top run-getter in the T20I format. She has over 3000 T20I runs, including one century and 21 half-centuries. She has a healthy average of close to 30 in 125 matches that she has played. She also has 50 T20I wickets, bowling right-arm quick.
Pitch
This will be the first T20I that will be played at this venue across men’s and women’s games. Prior to this, 10 ODIs have been played here. The highest score achieved is 283 and the lowest is 93. Teams batting first have won just one match, while teams batting second have won six. Three matches did not produce a result. It is a good batting wicket and bowlers may have to put in that extra effort to be successful here.
Weather
The weather does not look too good for cricket as there is a 79 percent chance of precipitation in the afternoon (local) with a 100 percent cloud cover. Rain and thunderstorms are expected. The average temperatures will be around 23 degrees Celsius. The wind will blow from the east-northeast at 7kph.
Fantasy playing XI
Katey Martin, Harmanpreet Kaur, Shafali Verma, Smriti Mandhana, Suzie Bates, Amy Satterthwaite, Deepti Sharma, Sophie Devine, Jess Kerr, Poonam Yadav, Rajeshwari Gayakwad
Match details
Date: February 9, 2022
Time: 5.30am IST
Venue: John Davies Oval, Queenstown
Live streaming: Amazon Prime
I am a former cricketer having represented Mumbai University at All India University level. I was a part of MCA probables for the U-19 and U-23 age group. I have been an avid cricket writer for the last five years. Currently I am pursuing my Ph.D from IIT Bombay.
