News

Series on the line in Auckland

By Mumbai Indians

After sailing to a 5-0 victory in the T20Is, the Men in Blue tasted their first defeat of the tour despite racking up a large total against the Black Caps. Ross Taylor, 109* (84), and skipper Tom Latham, 69 (48), took their team home. 

After a confidence-boosting victory, the Kiwis are one game away from sealing the series while the Indians will look to stay alive and take it to the decider. 

Here are the talking points ahead of the game: 

Will India try Chahal and Saini? 

Given that the Indian bowlers struggled to defend 347 runs, Kohli and Co. might want to bring in Navdeep Saini. The right-arm pacer conceded runs at an economy of just 6.50 during the T20I series. 

Yuzvendra Chahal is also likely to come in place of Kuldeep Yadav, whose 2/84 in Hamilton were the third most expensive numbers by an Indian spinner.

NZ look to end bilateral series drought against India 

With the win against India in Mount Maunganui, New Zealand have thrown open the possibility to secure their first bilateral ODI series win against India in six years. They have failed to cross the hurdle in the last three occasions. 

The Black Caps had last defeated the Men in Blue in an ODI series back in 2014 by a 4-0 margin.

Kyle Jamieson to make his ODI debut 

With pacer Scott Kuggeleijn ruled out with a flu and Ish Sodhi joining the New Zealand ‘A’ squad, Kyle Jamieson is all set to make his ODI debut at Eden Park. The 6 foot 8 inches bowler was quite impressive in the series against India ‘A’, taking six wickets in three games.

Drop-in pitch works well for batsmen at Auckland 

The pitch, that is “dropped in” at Eden Park, Auckland, is a batting paradise with the highest ODI score recorded here being 340/5. Out of the 76 matches played here, 42 games were won by the team that bowled first.

Good memories of Eden Park for Jadeja 

The last time both these teams featured in an ODI at the Eden Park, the match ended in a tie. Ravindra Jadeja was the Man of the Match as he picked a couple of wickets and scored an unbeaten 66 from just 45 balls.

Spotlight on Shaw and Agarwal 

Prithvi Shaw and Mayank Agarwal have a golden opportunity in the absence of the regular openers to display their mettle. Both were off to a good start at Hamilton but couldn’t convert it into a big knock.

The second One Day International is scheduled to begin at 7:30 AM IST at Eden Park, Auckland.