- New Zealand will be hoping to salvage the series as India prepares to face Wellington. New Zealand will be without Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson, while Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is expected to try his luck at No.1 again.
- 3 in the absence of Ishan Kishan The three that count: Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah are all smiling after dismissing Pat Cummins. The three that count: Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah, all smiles after dismissing Pat Cummins, India vs Australia, World Cup, Chennai, October 8, 2023 India started the year on a high note, becoming the first team to successfully defend the T20 World Cup World Cup title by losing a total of one match in two editions.
- Then they lost 2-0 in Ireland in rougher and windier conditions.
New Zealand will be hoping to salvage the series as India prepares to face Wellington. New Zealand will be without Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson, while Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is expected to try his luck at No.1 again.
3 in the absence of Ishan Kishan The three that count: Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah are all smiling after dismissing Pat Cummins. The three that count: Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah, all smiles after dismissing Pat Cummins, India vs Australia, World Cup, Chennai, October 8, 2023 India started the year on a high note, becoming the first team to successfully defend the T20 World Cup World Cup title by losing a total of one match in two editions. Then they lost 2-0 in Ireland in rougher and windier conditions. Then they lost the series in England.
Even at home without Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya, they didn’t look invincible against West Indies, the series ended 2-2. In dynamic and windy New Zealand, with Bumrah and Hardik still missing, India won two of two games against the World Cup finalists with just one training session before the first game. They have now won nine of their last ten games against New Zealand, although the last Test and ODI series between the teams was played in New Zealand.
From Christchurch to Wellington’s Cake Tin (Hnry Stadium) stronger winds but shorter pitch boundaries can be inferred at around 60m. Thanks to better execution of bowling plans and generous fielding gifts from New Zealand, India managed to take the lead. In order to take the new dimensions into account, the plans must be adjusted.
New Zealand will also be without Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson, who did not complete their stay on Saturday evening. Having lost their last two home series against India, New Zealand will be hoping to avoid a third loss this early in the series. These are must-win times in New Zealand and India are feeling pretty comfortable so far.
New Zealand: LLWLL (last five T20Is completed, most recent first) India: WWLWL Together, New Zealand’s great spinners Mitchell Santner and Michael Bracewell bowled 16 overs for 132 runs and eight wickets in two games. India only plays one specialist, Axar Patel, and he is almost ten years old. This is partly due to the size and cunning of the spinners, but also due to a certain reluctance to take risks on spin.
Tilak Varma, for example, achieved a strike rate of 76 against spin and 220 against pace. Sanju Samson and Naman Dhir are the only ones who started spin art. There could be an argument for being more proactive, as you don’t want Tilak Varma repeating under the ball for 15 minutes and then relying on a less likely but sensational acceleration against the pace.
Matt Henry bowled just two overs in the last game, including a first, and has now been dropped from the series as he takes into account the other two formats. Lockie Ferguson is only out for one game. They still have Adam Milne and Blair Tickner for the rest of the series and Kyle Jamieson for this match before playing a Ford Trophy match.
It might be temng to put a left-handed hitter in the top five, but Bevon Jacobs peared to be in good she. New Zealand (probable): 1 Finn Allen, 2 Tim Seifert (wk), 3 Bevon Jacobs/Devon Conway, 4 Glenn Phillips, 5 Daryl Mitchell, 6 Michael Bracewell, 7 Mitchell Santner (ct), 8 Nathan Smith, 9 Kyle Jamieson, 10 Adam Milne, 11 Jacob Duffy. India stuck to their goal of not jeopardizing the batting power of the top five, no matter what a replacement might bring.
It might have been possible to replace Dhir, whose second skill is spin, with a bowling all-rounder, but India essentially declared that his batting was more important than Shivam Dube’s bowling. In the absence of a full-time bowler cable of batting at no. They stuck with Nitish Kumar Reddy for 8, who actually bowled two good 19th overs.
Expect them to stick with this combination. Ishan Kishan is yet to fully recover, which will give Vaibhav Sooryavanshi another chance at No. 1. India (probable): 1 Abhishek Sharma, 2 Sanju Samson (wk), 3 Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, 4 Shreyas Iyer (ct), 5 Tilak Varma, 6 Naman Dhir, 7 Nitish Kumar Reddy, 8 Axar Patel, 9 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 10 Prince Yadav, 11 Arshdeep Singh.
The last T201 in Wellington was a comfortable and successful defense of 164, but there was also a successful chase of 216 at the same venue. They would expect a new life. There could still be a low score, but probably not due to slow pitching.
Before the game it was very windy, there was also a bit of rain, but the actual playing times should be much quieter, with no rain and only moderately strong winds. Tilak Varma has now remained unbeaten in 26 T20 chases and his team has won each of them. Arshdeep Singh has 38 wickets in 2026, just one behind Josh Little’s record for most wickets in a year for a full member player. Quotes “I felt like we played pretty well in probably 80% of every game. We just couldn’t put the finishing touches on it every time, which is dispointing.” Rob Walter on New Zealand’s 2-0 series deficit “Either you’re going to look at it as a challenge, or you’re going to look at it as a negative, or it’s going to dispoint you.”
And hopefully we can get these guys in the mental space where they’re excited about this challenge. “Wellington Wind New Zealand’s Morne Morkel will be without Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson, while Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is expected to try his luck at No. 1 again. Due to Ishan Kishan’s absence, New Zealand will be unable to call on Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson at No. 3, while Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is expected to try his luck again at No. 3. 3 in the absence of Ishan Kishan “Make sure you have a very strong fan at home and get in the fan,” jokes Morne Morkel when asked about India’s ability to counter Wellington’s strong winds. Bhuvneshwar Kumar scored 0 for 49 on his return to India, New Zealand vs India, 1st T20I, Christchurch, October 22, 2026 NZ vs India – New Zealand coach Rob Walter was dispointed when New Zealand failed to citalize on their chances in the first two T20Is. New Zealand head coach Rob Walter says quick rotation is not a “perfect science” but that it is essential for the upcoming ODIs and Tests against India. Glenn Phillips prepares to take the catch, New Zealand vs India, 2nd T20I, Christchurch, October 24, 2026. Kyle Jamieson will leave the T20I squad after the third match and Blair Tickner will join the team for the final three matches. New Zealand will be without Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson, while Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is expected to have another go at the top spot.
3 in the absence of Ishan Kishan Hagley Oval attracted a large crowd, England v Scotland, World Cup 2015, Group A, Christchurch, 23 February 2015 Hagley Oval attracted a large crowd, England v Scotland, World Cup 2015, Group A, Christchurch, 23 February 2015 Hagley Oval attracted a large crowd, England v Scotland, World Cup 2015, Group A, Christchurch, 23 February 2015 2015 Hagley Oval attracted a large crowd, England v Scotland, World Cup 2015, Group A, Christchurch, 23rd February 2015 A wide angle view of the picturesque Seddon Park in Hamilton, New Zealand v England, 1st Test, Hamilton, 8th March 2008 NZ v IND 2026/27, NZ v IND 3rd T20I Match Preview – New Zealand hoping for a Recovery series as India prepares in Wellington wind NZ vs IND 2026/27 Match Preview New Zealand vs India: New Zealand will be without Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson while Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is expected to try his luck at No. 1 again. Due to Ishan Kishan’s absence, New Zealand will be unable to call on Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson at No. 3, while Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is expected to try his luck again at No. 3. 3 in Ishan Kishan’s absence
