(Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images)
India defeated the depleted Kiwis in the 1st T20I to take an early lead in the 5 match T20I series. The New Zealanders who are at the back of an humiliating tour of Australia, where they were whitewashed 3-0 in tests looked far from their best in the 1st T20I.
Here we look at 5 mistakes that Kane Williamson’s side should avoid to level the series
Remove Rahul and Rohit early in the innings
The Kiwis posted a healthy target of 203 runs and gave India a stiff target of 204 to chase in 20 overs but on a wicket which was flat as a highway and with short straight boundaries, India never found it difficult to overcome the target. The important thing that went against the Kiwis was that they allowed Rahul to set up a good solid base which allowed the Indian middle order with the likes of Shreyas and Manish Pandey to take India home comfortably. It will be important for Kiwis to remove the dashing opener KL Rahul who is in the form of his life and the Indian vice captain Rohit Sharma inside the power play to stand a chance to level the series
Maintain the tempo in the middle overs
In the first game, the openers gave an excellent start to the Kiwis but the introduction of Chahal and wickets in regular intervals after the power plays dented the Kiwis run rate big time as a result they ended up posting a par total on an absolute belter of a wicket. They should maintain their tempo in the middle overs to get to a total so that their bowlers can defend it.
Convert half-chances to wickets
If a team has to win against the mighty Indians, ground fielding and catching should be at the top of the world. The Indian skipper was dropped by Ish Sodhi in the crucial stage of the Indian run chance which completely took the game away from the Kiwis. If New Zealanders can stop the Indian batsmen from taking doubles and easy singles and take the difficult chances that come their way, the Kiwis can make a game out of it.
Convert good starts into match winning knocks
The #4 batsmen in the T20I arena Colin Munro has got multiple centuries in the international T20 cricket. In the 1st T20I, there were as many as 3 half centurions for the Kiwis which includes Colin Munro, Kane Williamson, and Ross Taylor but none of them were good enough for them to win the match. It is important for them that at least one of their top order batsmen to stay till the end and convert their starts into a match winning knocks.
Apply more pressure by bowling spinners in tandem
Indian batsmen are susceptible to spin and that was evident in the 1st T20I when they tried to play out Ish Sodhi for most part of his spell. The skipper Kane Williamson should use his experienced spinners in Santner and Sodhi wisely in the middle overs to put breaks in the Indian innings. With the wicket expected to slow up a bit, the spinners can play a big part in deciding the result of this match.
Auckland will host the 2nd T20I on Sunday which also the hosted the 1st match.