Christchurch: India’s bowlers will look to improve their performance when the visitors take on New Zealand in the second T20 International here on Saturday, with batting-friendly conditions expected to pose another challenge.
India took a 1-0 lead in the five-match series with a record chase of 226 in the opener, but their bowling frailties were exposed once again.
The fifth and sixth bowling options remain a concern in the absence of Hardik Pandya. Nitish Kumar Reddy conceded 40 runs without taking a wicket, while Naman Dhir did not bowl. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, playing his first India match in nearly four years, conceded 49 runs and bowled two no-balls and two wides.
Finn Allen and Tim Seifert put the Indian pacers under pressure in the powerplay, while Axar Patel also had an expensive outing. Captain Shreyas Iyer admitted that the bowlers erred by pitching the ball too full instead of maintaining hard lengths.
India could rejig their batting order after Ishan Kishan was ruled out with an injury. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is expected to open alongside Abhishek Sharma, with Sanju Samson at No 3 and Tilak Varma returning to No 5. New Zealand, meanwhile, will look to Mitchell Santner and Michael Bracewell to contain India’s aggressive batting after the visitors’ top order scored 94 runs in the powerplay in the first match.
MATCH STARTS@12.30 PM
