Wind & dew set to play crucial role once again, Sooryavanshi likely to come in for Ishan

A “low grade right adductor strain” has ruled out Ishan Kishan from the second T20I of the five-match series in Christchurch on Saturday. This has opened the doors for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s inclusion in the playing XI at the Hagley Oval.

Kumar Kushagra, who is currently there with the India A squad, was added as cover for Ishan, the BCCI said late on Friday.

Thursday’s opener at the same venue was a thriller, with the opening combination of Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma adding 93 inside the Powerplay overs in their chase of 226. Despite the disadvantage of dew, New Zealand made it difficult for India in the middle overs until Shreyas Iyer and Naman Dhir’s cameos took India home.

India are a significantly less formidable force without Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya, but the young brigade under Iyer showed admirable fighting qualities to help India get off to a flying start. Sooryavanshi will return to the side after sitting out the T20Is against West Indies and the series-opener on Thursday. He has played eight T20Is at a strike-rate of 186.36 and has the ability to change the dimension of a match at any moment.

If Sooryavanshi comes in for Kishan, he is likely to open with Abhishek, with Samson moving down to No. 3. This could force the hosts to use the off spin of Michael Bracewell or Glenn Phillips early in the Powerplay.

The second match begins at 8pm local time as well, in nippy weather with dew coming in quickly. Iyer noted the surface played out a bit slow to start with, before becoming flatter. Samson also pointed out that there was plenty of swing to start with, but the ball nicely came off the surface. It’s the early movement seamers from both sides would want to capitalise on.

With no immediate concerns, New Zealand wouldn’t want to make any knee-jerk changes. After the first game, Glenn Phillips spoke about their rich fast-bowling depth, calling it a “great problem to have”. That rotation of those riches could kick in later in the series.

Matt Henry and Adam Milne went for plenty with the new ball, but if New Zealand do plan to rejig, they have the option of bringing in Kyle Jamieson or Jacob Duffy into the mix.

The Indians would wish to mix caution with aggression to tackle the pace challenges.