Last Updated on 5 years by Charbel Coorey

CWC 2019 Match 18: India v New Zealand Preview Dream11. IND vs NZ Dream11 Prediction

The sad story of this World Cup to date.

India and New Zealand, top four teams in the eyes of many, won’t just be battling each other at Trent Bridge. Rain, a prominent figure in recent World Cup matches, is likely to have a say in a game that has the potential to be one of the games of the tournament.

India have started their campaign in superb fashion. An impressive win over Australia was the sequel to a comfortable win against South Africa, which has made for great viewing for their fans. Out in numbers in England, backed by the millions watching back home, India are showing why they are one of the favourites for the World Cup. The injury to Shikhar Dhawan is a bit of a sour note to what’s been a good campaign to date. However, India will feel they have the depth to cover for his loss, so can they continue the momentum, if the weather allows for it?

New Zealand have also had the perfect start to their campaign. Sure, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan are three teams they are expected to beat – but beat them they have to sit atop of the World Cup standings. This is by far their biggest test so far, coming up against the side that knocked them over 4-1 in their own backyard earlier this year. Can New Zealand turn that around and make a massive statement in this tournament?

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Key to an India win

India’s top three, so crucial to their World Cup hopes, were outstanding against Australia. They saw out Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins well, then taking advantage of loose bowling from Australia’s change bowlers. Here, not only will Shikhar Dhawan be unavailable, but New Zealand have an in-form change bowler in Lockie Ferguson who can also cause damage. The ability of Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul to cope with any movement early will be crucial, putting pressure on New Zealand’s follow-up bowlers to come up with the goods. Can India’s top three overcome New Zealand’s top three seamers, paving the way for the middle order to perform as they did against Australia?

Also, a key feature of India’s 4-1 win in New Zealand earlier this year was their ability to pick up powerplay wickets. Martin Guptill and Colin Munro (if picked) will be in the sights of Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, both of whom have had strong starts to their respective campaigns. Early wickets will allow India to place pressure on stalwarts Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor, both of whom struggled to score quickly at times in the middle overs of their recent series vs India. With Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal bowling well, can India ensure they are bowling at an under-pressure middle order?

Key to a New Zealand win

Trent Boult, Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson have crucial roles to play. The latter two have been in the wickets so far in CWC 2019, sitting second and third respectively. However, they will now come across the strongest opposition in their schedule so far, so it is time for Trent Boult, who has only taken three wickets to date, to deliver against India’s top order. Will it be New Zealand who place pressure on India’s middle order, forcing a rebuild? Can the Black Caps get the better of the likes of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli?

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Also, what sort of powerplay will New Zealand have with the bat? Martin Guptill and Colin Munro (if picked), two attacking players, will be tasked with getting the Black Caps off to a strong start. However, this is easier said than done against Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who are both in good form. Effective use of the crease – such as batting further down the pitch against Bhuvneshwar – as well as good strike rotation will be vital in enabling New Zealand’s batsmen to build off a good start. Against quality opposition, you don’t want to spend too much time rebuilding.

Pitch and conditions

Unfortunately, the weather forecast doesn’t look too promising. The UK Met predicts at least a 50% chance of rain, which is a shame. The Trent Bridge pitch is arguably the best for batting in England.

Possible Playing 11

Shikhar Dhawan is out with a hairline fracture to his thumb. KL Rahul will open in his place, but who will bat four? Dinesh Karthik was reportedly seen in the nets a lot more than Vijay Shankar, who are both fighting it out for that spot.

India: 1. Rohit Sharma, 2. KL Rahul, 3. Virat Kohli (c), 4. Dinesh Karthik/Vijay Shankar, 5. MS Dhoni (wk), 6. Kedar Jadhav, 7. Hardik Pandya, 8. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 9. Kuldeep Yadav, 10. Yuzvendra Chahal, 11. Jasprit Bumrah

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Henry Nicholls could return for this clash which means Colin Munro would miss out. Also, does Tim Southee get the nod ahead of Matt Henry, who has been good so far this tournament?

New Zealand: 1. Martin Guptill, 2. Henry Nicholls, 3. Kane Williamson (c), 4. Ross Taylor, 5. Tom Latham (wk), 6. Jimmy Neesham, 7. Colin de Grandhomme, 8. Mitchell Santner, 9. Matt Henry, 10. Lockie Ferguson, 11. Trent Boult

Dream11 Prediction

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Option 1:

Option 2:

Stats and Facts

• Head-to-head in World Cups: Played 7, India 3, New Zealand 4.
• The last meeting between the sides in World Cups was in 2003, where India won by seven wickets.
• India beat New Zealand 4-1 in New Zealand earlier this year.
• Virat Kohli needs 57 runs to reach 11,000 in ODIs. If he achieves it in this game, he’d have done it in 222 innings, smashing the previous record of 276 held by Sachin Tendulkar.
• Ross Taylor averages 79.52 in 31 ODIs since 2017.

Match Prediction

Hard to see a result given the forecast, which is a shame.

If we are lucky to get a game, back India to win given their good form and recent wood over New Zealand. However, India have to be on their game against any movement from Trent Boult and co.

Thanks for reading!

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