India vs New Zealand, T20 World Cup 2016, Match 13 at Nagpur: Key Battles

India and New Zealand will face off in Match 13 of the ICC T20 World Cup 2016 at Nagpur on Tuesday. The two teams have locked horns in only five Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) till date, with New Zealand winning four of them while the fifth produced no result. As such, India have a 0 per cent win record against New Zealand. India will look to change that disappointing stat by taking the Black Caps head on at Nagpur. Here are a few of the key battles that could dictate the fate of the match.

Rohit Sharma vs Trent Boult: India’s opening batsman is in fantastic form, and he will be confident of doing well against the slightly misfiring New Zealand bowling attack. However, he will need to be wary of Trent Boult, who is always a dangerous prospect regardless of the format. If there is any swing on offer, Boult will know how to exploit it. Rohit is not the most proficient of Indian batsmen against the moving ball, so he will be a contender for an early dismissal if Boult gets it right.

Kane Williamson vs Ravichandran Ashwin: New Zealand’s best batsman Kane Williamson will be India’s major threat with the bat. Williamson is renowned for his proficiency against pace and spin alike, and India will need their main bowler R Ashwin to halt him in his tracks. Ashwin could be called upon to open bowling for India, in which case he will be up against Williamson early in the innings. If he can take out Williamson, the Black Caps will lose their back bone. Likewise, if Williamson dominates Ashwin, India’s most potent weapon will be blunted.

Virat Kohli vs Mitchell McClenaghan: In Virat Kohli, India has the highest-ranked T20I batsman in the world. Kohli has been in exceptional form and will want to continue scoring runs by the truckloads in ICC World T20 2016. New Zealand will hope their ace in the hole, Mitchell McClenaghan will be able to bring his A-Game and get one through Kohli.

Martin Guptill vs Ashish Nehra: The Kiwi opener has been in rare form in the last few months, and will want to carry on his excellent run in the T20 World Cup as well. Guptill is capable of getting New Zealand off to a flying start in a manner akin to what Brendon McCullum managed during ICC Cricket World Cup 2015. India will hope their seasoned campaigner Ashish Nehra can strike early in his innings and take out New Zealand’s sledgehammer at the top.

Yuvraj Singh vs Mitchell Santner: Yuvraj Singh has been showing signs of his old flair, which bodes wonderfully for India. If Mitchell Santner plays he may have to bowl to Yuvraj in the middle overs. If that happens, it will be interesting to see whether the highly-rated young spinner can hold his own against a man who has been playing for over a decade. On the other hand, it could also come to pass that Yuvraj will need to bowl his left-arm spin while Santner is batting, which will again prove to be an appealing battle.