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NZ vs IND 1st T20I Preview Dream11 Possible Playing 11 Pitch Report | NZ vs IND 1st T20 Dream11 Prediction | New Zealand vs India 1st T20I Preview Dream11 Prediction | New Zealand vs India 1st T20 Key Players | NZ vs IND 1st T20I Dream11 Prediction Today

India’s much-awaited tour of New Zealand is set to get underway, after winning their home season comprehensively.

The first assignment of their six-week long tour is a T20I at Eden Park, typically a challenging ground for the bowlers. It kicks off what promises to be a very exciting series, as this is a good chance for both teams to get their combinations right before the World T20 later this year.

However, can they overcome a very short and challenging turnaround after their ODI series vs Australia only ended on Sunday?

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Key Players to Watch/Key Stats

• Colin Munro (248 runs), loves playing against India, he’s the highest
  run-scorer between these two sides and he needs just 14 runs to
  become the highest run-scorer.
• Rohit Sharma (198 runs) and Virat Kohli (197 runs) are the 2nd & 3rd highest run-scorer respectively for India against New Zealand in T20Is. MS Dhoni (223 runs) is the highest run-scorer for India.
• Kohli averages 49.25, 2nd highest between these two sides, and highest for India.
• Tim Seifert (139 runs), can be your differential pick in this match. He averages 46.33 and has a strike-rate of 173.75 against India.
• Ross Taylor will be very important for New Zealand in the middle. He has 183 runs against India in T20Is.
• Kiwi Bowlers have dominated their Indian counterparts, with the top five wicket-takers in India vs New Zealand T20Is being Kiwis.
• Ish Sodhi holds the top spot with 11 wickets, followed by Mitchell Santner (9) & Tim Southee (7).
• Jasprit Bumrah & Yuzvendra Chahal are the highest wicket-takers for India with 4 wickets each.
• Krunal Pandya bagged a 3-for when played in Auckland. Now that he’s out, Ravindra Jadeja can be a crucial player for India.
• Rishabh Pant scored a 28 ball 40 last time India played in Auckland.

Head-to-Head

• The Kiwis have dominated India in T20Is.
• Matches 12, New Zealand 8, India 3, 1 match abandoned.
• India’s performance has been more miserable in New Zealand as they have won only one out of five games played.

Key to a New Zealand win

Colin Munro has enjoyed life against India. Despite his inconsistency in a New Zealand shirt, Munro remains a dangerous player for New Zealand. After all, if he can fire early, it allows the likes of Martin Guptill, Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor to continue building on the platform set.

Also, can New Zealand make inroads into India’s top three? All three of KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have been in fine form of late, and while India possess talent in their middle order, NZ will benefit from early breakthroughs that can reduce the run rate.

Key to an India win

India’s powerplay and death bowling will be under the microscope in this match. The return of Jasprit Bumrah in recent weeks has helped, particularly with Bumrah bowling economically in the second and third ODIs against Australia. If the pacers can hold their own, it gives the spinners a little more to play with on a small ground.

Also, if India’s top order fires, watch out. There is often no ground big enough for Rohit’s sixes, and if he gets going, India will be destined for a big total. With the in-form KL Rahul and Virat Kohli for company, it is time the batting order hits their stride fully ahead of the World T20.

Possible Playing 11

Shikhar Dhawan has been ruled out due to injury. Sanju Samson has replaced him in the squad, but it looks unlikely that he’ll get to play in the
first match.

India: 1. KL Rahul (wk), 2. Rohit Sharma, 3. Virat Kohli (c), 4. Shreyas Iyer, 5. Rishabh Pant, 6. Shivam Dube, 7. Ravindra Jadeja, 8. Shardul Thakur/Mohammed Shami, 9. Navdeep Saini, 10. Kuldeep Yadav/ Yuzvendra Chahal, 11. Jasprit Bumrah

Also read: How important is Hardik Pandya to India’s plans in 2020? Click here to read.

The Kiwi team is also without the likes of Trent Boult and Lockie Ferguson. The youngsters have a great chance to cement their place in the side, before the World T20.

New Zealand: 1. Colin Munro, 2. Martin Guptill, 3. Kane Williamson (c), 4. Ross Taylor, 5. Tim Seifert (WK), 6. Colin de Grandhomme, 7. Daryl Mitchell, 8. Mitchell Santer, 9. Scott Kuggeleijn, 10. Tim Southee, 11. Hamish Bennett/ Blair Tickner

Eden Park Pitch Report & Conditions

The Eden Park pitch is expected to be a batting paradise, to go with the very short boundaries. A run-feast can be expected between two capable batting lineups, as shown when Australia chased down 240+ vs New Zealand on this ground two years ago.

The weather in Auckland is forecast to be fine and a very comfortable early 20s by the time the first ball is bowled at 7:50pm local time.

Dream11 Prediction

Option 1:

Option 2:

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Match Prediction

India are arguably favourites coming into this match, but they have a poor record against the Kiwis, especially in New Zealand. A thrilling contest in on the cards, with India, on the back off good white-ball form, a good chance of edging this one out in a close match.

It could ultimately depend on how quickly India can hit their stride after just a few days in New Zealand before this match.

Thanks for reading!

Written by Robin Rounder. Follow Robin on Twitter today

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