Background
New Zealand, also known as the Black Caps, is playing against the Indian team, also known as the Men in Blue. This is a five-match ODI series that starts with today’s game and finishes on 31 March. The first three matches are being played in Wellington, Napier and Hamilton respectively while the last two matches are being played in Auckland and Christchurch.
New Zealand has a more experienced team when compared to India which has a mix of veterans and youngsters. The Kiwis have an edge over their opponents when it comes to skills as they boast of Trent Boult, Tim Southee and Mitchell Santner – all of whom were members of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 winning squad.
The Teams
In the 3rd ODI of the ODI series, the team’s lineup was announced and both teams are looking strong.
The Indian lineup includes Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, MS Dhoni, Ravindra Jadeja, Yuzvendra Chahal and Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
The New Zealand lineup includes Kane Williamson (captain), Henry Nicholls (wicketkeeper), Ross Taylor, Colin Munro, Martin Guptill and Mitchell Santner.
New Zealand has a good batting line up with Williamson being a key player for them in the middle order. Their bowling is decent too with Santner who has shown good form lately.
The Indians on the other hand, have an excellent batting lineup but not much to offer when it comes to their bowling department. They lack quality fast bowlers and this could be a factor that makes all the difference here.
We can see that India has a higher chance of winning if they can find some way to create pressure from their bowling unit or something similar to stop the run flow from the other end. But we cannot rule out New Zealand as their batsmen always score heavily when needed.
The Venue
This is the first of a five-match series in which the two sides will play each other at home and away. The toss has been won by India and they have chosen to bat first. There are seven changes to the Indian side, with Karun Nair, Hanuma Vihari and Kedar Jadhav coming in for Shikhar Dhawan, Ambati Rayudu and Dinesh Karthik respectively. Rohit Sharma has moved up from number three to open alongside KL Rahul. With a new ball attack of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami and Umesh Yadav, it could be an interesting day at Eden Park. For more Cricket Betting Tips 2023 click here.
The Weather
It is an interesting question, who will win today’s match? For this, we need to take a look at the weather. The conditions are expected to be clear with a light breeze blowing from the southwest. This means that both teams should be able to play their shots and use the whole field. There is no rain in the forecast and there is no chance of any interruptions due to wet grounds. It could go either way but I think New Zealand have just a little bit more going for them. They are slightly higher in the rankings and have a few more quality players on their team so I would predict them to come out as winners in this game which would mean they would lead 1-0 in this series.
The Pitch
The Indian team are looking to avenge their loss against New Zealand in the ODI series opener. They’ve been in good form of late, and have beaten both Pakistan and Australia in recent ODIs. The Kiwis have also been performing well, but they’ll need to keep winning if they want to go on to play England next.
So who do you think will come out on top when these two sides meet? Share your thoughts with us below and we’ll help you predict the outcome of this match!
The Toss
An important part of any cricket match is the toss. This is where a player tosses a coin in the air and predicts which side the coin will land on. It is worth noting that, in terms of predicting a result, the player who wins the toss has an obvious advantage over their opponent.
For example, if England plays Australia and England wins the toss, they can elect to bat first or second. If England elects to bat first, then it would be advantageous for them as they would only have to face a set number of overs before taking their turn at batting again. On top of this, should England elect to bat second then Australia would be attacking them with some fresh bowlers after having defended against their opponents for their allotted overs?
The Match
The two teams have played each other in 12 ODIs with the Indians winning 8 and the Kiwis winning 4. The last ODI was at Delhi where the Indian team won by 6 wickets. The Kiwis are riding high after their victory against England, which is also a tough hurdle for the Indians to overcome.
The game has been very unpredictable in recent times and it’s difficult to predict which team will come out on top. But the one thing we do know is that this game promises to be a nail-biting affair!
The Result
New Zealand is expected to defeat India in the ODI series. The Kiwis have won 8 out of their last 10 matches against the Indians and their current form is a lot better than that of the visitors. Kane Williamson has been in fine form with the bat, scoring back-to-back centuries against Pakistan before also making a big contribution with his bowling. Allrounder Mitchell Santner is expected to make his comeback from injury which should provide a much-needed boost to their bowling lineup. India, meanwhile, has lost three straight ODIs and is not doing as well as it did during the tour of South Africa earlier this year. Virat Kohli’s poor form is considered one of the main reasons for this slump. They need to get back on track quickly if they want to avoid being at an all-time low when they travel to England later this year for a five-game ODI series.
