Last Updated on 1 month by Charbel Coorey
SCO vs NZ 1st T20 Dream11 Prediction & Fan2Play Possible 11 Pitch Report | SCO vs NZ 1st T20 Dream11 Prediction Today | Scotland vs New Zealand 1st T20I Key Players | Edinburgh Pitch Report
Life after Kyle Coetzer officially begins for Scotland. The former captain recently announced his retirement from T20Is, passing the baton on after an excellent career leading Scotland to bigger and better things on the field.
However, there is quite a big distraction hanging over the heads of everyone in Scotland cricket. A shocking indepndent report revealed Cricket Scotland to be institutionally racist, with 448 examples of racism found in the Changing the Boundaries report by Plan4Sport.
Indeed, what promised to be a nice occasion with the visit of an established Full Member nation is bathed in institutional turmoil. Now, the players will need to put all that aside and deliver against New Zealand, as the series serves as fantastic preparation for T20 World Cup later this year.
The Black Caps come into the series off the back of an efficient 3-0 series win in Ireland. Glenn Phillips was particularly brilliant, but contributions throughout the lineup would have been most pleasing, and they will be aiming for more of the same.
SCO vs NZ 1st T20 Possible Playing 11
Scotland: 1. George Munsey, 2. Ollie Hairs, 3. Matthew Cross (wk), 4. Richie Berrington (c), 5. Calum MacLeod, 6. Michael Leask, 7. Chris Greaves, 8. Gavin Main, 9. Mark Watt, 10. Safyaan Sharif, 11. Alasdair Evans
New Zealand: 1. Martin Guptill, 2. Finn Allen, 3. Dane Cleaver (wk), 4. Glenn Phillips, 5. Daryl Mitchell, 6. James Neesham, 7. Michael Bracewell, 8. Mitchell Santner (c), 9. Ish Sodhi, 10. Lockie Ferguson, 11. Blair Tickner/Jacob Duffy
Key Players to Watch/Key Stats
Scotland:
- George Munsey is the only Scotland player to strike at over 140 in T20Is (146.31). In nine T20s at Grange Cricket Club, Munsey has struck 192 runs at an average of 24.00 and strike rate of 148.84.
- Richie Berrington has the most runs of any player in T20s on this ground. The new skipper has struck 251 runs in eight innings at an average of 41.83 and strike rate of 121.84. This includes four 30+ scores.
- However, Berrington comes into this series in poor form in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League 2 tournament. After his 107* vs USA in late May, Berrington made scores of 13, 15, 1, 3, 0 and 4*.
- Calum MacLeod has a key role to play as an experienced member of the Scotland team. He has just one 30+ score in nine T20s on this ground (overall average of 21.00), so how he fares here will be interesting to see.
- All-rounder Michael Leask struck a brilliant 42* off 20 balls against New Zealand in the 2021 T20 World Cup. Also, Leask has the most wickets (13) at Grange Cricket Club at an impressive average of 15.08 and economy of 6.53.
- Alasdair Evans also has 13 scalps in nine matches on this ground (avg. 20.08, econ. 7.25).
- Safyaan Sharif took 2/28 vs New Zealand in last year’s World Cup, which included the dismissal of Daryl Mitchell.
New Zealand:
- Martin Guptill struck 93 off 56 balls against Scotland back in November 2021. What made the knock so impressive is that it was played during the day in hot Dubai.
- Guptill scored 15 off 8 against Sharif, 38 off 16 against Evans and 19 off 12 against Greaves that day.
- Glenn Phillips produced two man of the match performances in the recent three-match series vs Ireland. Overall, he struck 148 runs at an average of 148 and strike rate of 132.14.
- James Neesham smashed 53 runs in the Ireland series at a strike rate of 220.83. The all-rounder also took two wickets.
- Lockie Ferguson was in fine form in Ireland. The pacer took five wickets in two matches at an economy of 4.50.
- Ish Sodhi dismissed Munsey and Berrington in a spell of 2/42 against Scotland in the 2021 T20 World Cup. The legspinner had a good series against Ireland, where he took six scalps in three T20Is.
Other Stats and Facts
- This will be third T20I between Scotland and New Zealand. The Black Caps won the other two meetings (in 2009 and 2021).
- This will be the first time the two teams meet in a T20I outside a World Cup.
- Daryl Mitchell found his mojo in the last T20I against Ireland with a 32-ball 48.
- Gavin Main comes into this series in good form. He took eight wickets in his last three ODIs and also scored 64* vs Nepal.
Grange Cricket Club Edinburgh Pitch Report and Weather
Scotland and Zimbabwe played out three competitive T20Is on this ground in September 2021. The average first innings score in that series was 151.33, with the team batting first winning two of the three matches.
A partly cloudy day is forecast with a top of about 19 degrees celsius. No rain is forecast.
SCO vs NZ 1st T20 Dream11 Prediction 27 July 2022
Note: The below teams are not based on the final playing XIs. We may not be able to update these in time. Use the stats and commentary in this article as well as your own instincts to create your teams.
Option 1:
Option 2:
Fan2Play Prediction
Base Team:
- Wicket-Keepers: Matthew Cross
- Batsmen: Martin Guptill, Glenn Phillips, Richie Berrington
- All-rounders: Jimmy Neesham
- Bowlers: Lockie Ferguson, Ish Sodhi, Safyaan Sharif
SCO vs NZ 1st T20 Match Prediction: Who will win?
New Zealand should win this clash.
