Deadline: January 26, 2020 at 12:20 PM IST
Venue: Eden Park, Auckland
Pitch report
Flat wicket, fast outfield and shorter boundaries form a Bermuda Triangle for bowlers at The Eden Park, Auckland. India chased down 204 with an over to spare. Only spinners saw some light at the end of the tunnel, bagging 5 of 8 wickets. Pick as many batsmen as you can.
Fantasy team
We have opted for a fantasy team on the basis of players’ impact, recent performances, and credit points.
You can also check players’ performances in the last 5 matches. Tap on the players’ images to get the data while making your fantasy team.
Wicketkeeper: KL Rahul (c)
Batsmen: Shreyas Iyer, Virat Kohli (vc), Rohit Sharma, Ross Taylor, Martin Guptill, Kane Williamson
All-rounders: Colin Munro, Ravindra Jadeja, Mitchell Santner
Bowlers: Yuzvendra Chahal
NOTE: Pick your fantasy cricket team wisely.
Power players
Shreyas Iyer’s dip in form affected his popularity in fantasy cricket. Only 25% players picked him, and he turned out to be the Player of the Match. His 58 off 29 included 3 sixes and 5 fours. More importantly, he remained calm after the wicket of Virat Kohli and saw India through.
Rohit Sharma’s early wicket did not hinder KL Rahul‘s aggression, so much so that Virat Kohli played second-fiddle at one point. His 56 off 27 set the foundation for the massive chase. With the gloves, he was as safe as houses. He now has five 40-plus scores in his last six T20Is.
Virat Kohli‘s first T20I in New Zealand was memorable for him. Not only did his team come up triumphant but his contribution of 45 runs was valuable.
Colin Munro‘s good times at the Eden Park continue, scoring his fifth half-century at the venue. Against India, his average has shot up to 44.
Value picks
Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor started off slowly. Yuzvendra Chahal was in the middle of a momentum-changing spell. The experienced duo saw off a few deliveries and then launched a counterattack, scoring a fifty each.
All four spinners – Ish Sodhi, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mitchell Santner, and Ravindra Jadeja – were among the wickets. They outfoxed the batsmen with loop and guile.
Match prediction
Cricket is a funny game, and on such wickets, anything can happen. That being said, New Zealand are thin on quality bowling. Playing against one of the finest batting line-ups makes matters worse for them.
Probable XIs
New Zealand: Martin Guptill, Colin Munro, Kane Williamson (c), Ross Taylor, Tim Seifert (wk), Mitchell Santner, Blair Tickner, Tim Southee, Ish Sodhi, Hamish Bennett
India: Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul (wk), Virat Kohli (c), Shreyas Iyer, Shivam Dube, Manish Pandey, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Mohammad Shami, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah
Also, get to know the tips & tricks on how to play fantasy cricket.