In a crucial second T20I clash at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium in Raipur, India captain Suryakumar Yadav won the toss and elected to field first against New Zealand on Friday. This decision comes after a disappointing 48-run loss in the series opener, with the hosts desperate to level the three-match series.
Team India made two changes to their lineup. Axar Patel, sidelined by an injury from the previous game, and Jasprit Bumrah, rested for this encounter, were replaced by Harshit Rana and Kuldeep Yadav. The move signals a strategic shift to bolster the bowling attack while maintaining batting depth.
New Zealand, meanwhile, rung in three alterations. Rachin Ravindra, Kyle Jamieson, and Michael Bracewell made way for Tim Seifert, Matt Henry, and Jack Foulkes, aiming to strengthen their top order and pace options.
Suryakumar Yadav explained the toss decision post-win: ‘There’s already some dew around, and we haven’t chased recently, so bowling first makes sense. We play every game to improve across all facets. Two changes: Axar got injured last match, Bumrah is rested.’
Kiwi skipper Mitchell Santner echoed the sentiment: ‘We’d have bowled first too. Playing a strong team at home teaches valuable lessons. Three changes: Seifert for Robinson, Foulkes for Bracewell, and Matt Henry in.’
India’s playing XI features Sanju Samson as wicketkeeper, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, and Varun Chakaravarthy.
New Zealand fields Tim Seifert (wk), Devon Conway, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Mitchell Santner (c), Jack Foulkes, Ish Sodhi, Matt Henry, and Jacob Duffy.
With the ODI series already lost 1-2, India eyes redemption in T20Is. Historically, since 2007, India leads New Zealand 13-10 in 26 T20Is, with three ties (two won by NZ in super overs). The series continues in Guwahati (Jan 25), Visakhapatnam (Jan 28), and Thiruvananthapuram (Jan 31).
