Dharamshala: Rohit Sharma-led India is all set to face New Zealand on Sunday in the 21st match of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 at Dharamsala.
It will be the fifth match for both teams in their 2023 CWC campaign and both teams are coming in unbeaten as the Men in Blue and Blackcaps are yet to lose a match. The upcoming match between the two sides will certainly ensure that only one team will remain unbeaten unless rain spoils the party.
The Blackcaps are currently placed at the top of the standings with 8 earned points, whereas India is comfortably sitting just behind the Kiwis in the second spot with 8 points as well. However, the Blackcaps are enjoying big-margin wins, giving them a better net run rate compared to India.
Speaking about the injury concerns, India will most probably miss the services of Hardik Pandya, who picked up an injury on his left ankle, which got twisted in the last match against Bangladesh. On the other hand, the Blackcaps will miss skipper Kane Williamson, who fractured his thumb in the match against Bangladesh.
In the current scenario, seamer Mohammed Shami, who hasn’t played a match so far in the World Cup, is a certainty in the playing XI as the pitch here is expected to favour the fast bowlers to some extent.
And to bolster the batting, Suryakumar Yadav instantly comes into the mix. But it remains to be seen who is the other player India would replace in their bid to get the balance right.
Given the situation, Shardul Thakur is likely to be dropped as Shami would be better suited merely because of his pace and swing in these conditions.
Ravichandran Ashwin, too, provides an option for India with both bat and ball but it remains to be seen whether his off-spin would be effective here.
All eyes will be on Indian stars Virat Kohli, Sharma, Shubman Gill, KL Rahul, Jasprit Bumrah, and Mohammed Siraj, and New Zealand stars Williamson, Devon Conway, Daryl Mitchell, Mitchell Santner, Matt Henry, and Tom Latham. The match in Dharmashala on Sunday will be the 10th match between the two sides.
The last time the two teams met was at Old Trafford, Manchester, England, where New Zealand beat India by 18 runs.