After a thrilling chase in the first ODI against New Zealand where Virat Kohli (93) and young Harshit Rana (29 and 2/65) Led India to a 4-wicket victory, the caravan moved towards Rajkot. Leading the series 1-0, Shubman Gill‘s India have a chance to close the series with a game to spare. Led by New Zealand Michael Bracewellshowed great courage with the bat in the opener, but they will need an inexperienced bowling attack to step up to one of the flattest decks in the world.
Team news and tactics
India’s batting engine is purring. Rohit Sharma playing purely as a batsman freed him to attack from ball one, while Gill (56 in 1st ODI) and Kohli anchored the middle perfectly.
with Washington Sundar Missing from the squad after being ruled out for the rest of the series, India are likely to be included in the squad Nitish Kumar Reddy or Ayush Badoni to balance the bottom row. However, given the straight deck, they can trust Nitish as an all-round seam bowler to partner Harshit Rana.
Meanwhile, thanks to the Kiwis, he posted a competitive 300 in the first game Daryl Mitchell (84) and Devon Conway (56)but their bowling did not penetrate against the Indian middle order. Kyle Jamieson (4 wickets in 1st ODI) was the only bright spot with the ball. Captain Bracewell needs to manage his spinners better as Rajkot can be brutal for the slow bowlers if they don’t find the right length.
IND vs NZ, 2nd ODI: Match details
- Date and Time: January 14; 13:30 IST / 8:00 GMT
- Location: Niranjan Shah Stadium, Rajkot
Head-to-Head Record (ODI):
Matches played: 121 | India won: 63 | New Zealand won: 50 | No result/Closed: 8
Niranjan Shah Stadium Pitch Report:
Niranjan Shah Stadium is historically a graveyard for bowlers. The surface is hard, offering true bounce and minimal lateral movement, encouraging shots to go through the line. Heavy dew is expected in the evening, which makes the chase much easier. The captain who wins the toss will almost certainly be the first.
Also READ: Irfan Pathan explains why KL Rahul at No.6 makes sense for India in ODIs
Groups
India: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill (c), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Ravindra Jadeja, KL Rahul (wk), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Arshdeep Singh, Ayush Badoni, Yashasvihr Jaisuvrel.
New Zealand: Devon Conway, Henry Nicholls, Will Young, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Hay (wk), Michael Bracewell (c), Zakary Foulkes, Christian Clarke, Kyle Jamieson, Adithya Ashok, Jayden Lennox, Nick Kelly, Josh Clarkson, Michael
IND vs NZ, 2nd ODI: Today’s Match Prediction
Case 1:
- India win the toss first
- New Zealand powerplay score: 40-50
- New Zealand total score: 280-300
Case 2:
- New Zealand go first in the toss
- India powerplay score: 55-65
- India total score: 300-330
Match Result: The bowling team that came first in the competition
Also READ: IND vs NZ: Rib injury rules out Washington Sundar for rest of ODI series; change was announced
