After another home ODI series win, India brace for tougher New Zealand challenge

 

Three days after completing a record victory over Sri Lanka to seal a sixth consecutive home ODI series win, the Indian cricket team meets New Zealand for three more matches in the 50-over format. The opponents offer a stiffer challenge than a depleted Sri Lanka did, but one cannot shake the feeling that India’s road to the home ODI World Cup in ten months’ time is taking rather ominous shape.

Indian teams are expected to win at home, and yet the manner of defeat over Sri Lanka – 67 runs, four wickets and a record-shattering 317 runs – indicates that Rohit Sharma’s unit was not really tested enough in the recent three-match series. Coming off the highest margin of victory in ODI history on Sunday, India will once more back themselves to defeat a side they lost to away from home in late 2022.

With three centuries in the span of four ODIs, Virat Kohli is back doing what he does best in the format. In his own words, he is content doing what he does and being “in a nice space” is ominous for opposing teams in an ODI World Cup year. Shubman Gill, who Rohit backed at the start of the Sri Lanka series while leaving out Ishan Kishan, a double-centurion in his previous ODI, repaid the faith with 70 in the first match and 116 in the third. With nine wickets in the ODI series at 10.22 apiece and while conceding runs at just 4.05 per over, Mohammed Siraj has put himself in pole position for a lot more matches on the road to the World Cup. Kuldeep Yadav, who has reason to consider himself unlucky on several counts, claimed five wickets at 13.40 in his two chances against Sri Lanka.

India have very few concerns heading into these three ODIs versus New Zealand, who have not played this format in the country since 2017 and who, historically, have not won a single ODI series in India (just eight wins in 35 ODIs dating back to 1987). That said, the Black Caps have won three away ODI series in the space of six months, so they will be tougher than Sri Lanka. In particular, their stand-in captain Tom Latham has proven a thorn in India’s side with an average of 65.07 and two centuries and five fifties across 15 ODI innings.

The ODIs will be played in Hyderabad (January 18), Raipur (January 21) and Indore (January 24) before the teams contest three T20Is.

 

TEAM NEWS

 

INDIA

There are a few changes to India’s ODI squad. KL Rahul and Axar Patel have been given a break for personal reasons, and in their places, KS Bharat has been named second wicketkeeper after Kishan and Shahbaz Ahmed fills in a left-arm spinner and lower-order batsman. Shardul Thakur is back to, in place of left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh.

This means that Kishan, who in his previous ODI slammed the fastest double-century in the format, will slot into the middle order. Whether Surkyakumar Yadav, who played only one of three ODIs versus Sri Lanka, gets another chance is not so clear.

 

India likely XI (first ODI): 1 Rohit Sharma (capt), 2 Shubman Gill, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Shreyas Iyer, 5 Ishan Kishan (wk), 6 Hardik Pandya, 7 Washington Sundar, 8 Shardul Thakur, 9 Kuldeep Yadav, 10 Mohammed Siraj, 11 Umran Malik

 

NEW ZEALAND

Latham has been named New Zealand’s captain for the series, with Kane Williamson and Tim Southee not reaching India after the 2-1 ODI win in Pakistan. In the absence of the team’s most experience batsman and bowler, as well as their leading run-getter and wicket-taker from the Pakistan series win, opportunities present themselves for Mark Chapman, Henry Nicholls, Henry Shipley and Jacob Duffy. Finn Allen, Daryl Mitchell and Latham all struggled for big scores in Pakistan.

New Zealand likely XI (first ODI): 1 Finn Allen, 2 Devon Conway, 3 Mark Chapman, 4 Daryl Mitchell, 5 Tom Latham (capt/wk), 6 Glenn Phillips, 7 Michael Bracewell, 8 Mitchell Santner, 9 Henry Shipley, 10 Ish Sodhi, 11 Lockie Ferguson

 

PITCH & CONDITIONS

The previous ODI held at Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium was back in 2019, when India chased Australia’s 236 to win by six wickets and with 10 deliveries remaining. Traditionally, the venue aids batsmen as evident by ODI totals of 350, 357, 300 and 290.

 

PREDICTION

It is tough to see New Zealand, despite their 2-1 win over Pakistan, land in India and upset this current outfit. Expect another 3-0 win for Rohit’s team.