World Cup 2019: Three key battles to watch out for when India take on New Zealand

When India take on New Zealand at Trent Bridge on Thursday it will be a contest between two teams who haven’t lost a single game up till now. India won their first game against South Africa and then defeated Australia in a high-scoring game. On the other hand, New Zealand are coming fresh off victories against relatively easy opponents in Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka. The Black Caps won comfortably against Sri Lanka and Afghanistan but had to fight it out against Bangladesh.

Both the teams have got their key players in form and that’s what is important in a long tournament like the World Cup. India’s top three have got going whereas New Zealand’s middle-order is back to business. The likes of Kane Williamson, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Ross Taylor have got some useful runs under their belt before an important game. Even the bowlers for both the teams are doing a phenomenal job.

These two teams will meet at Trent Bridge in Nottingham which is the best wicket to bat on in the country. It could be another high-scoring game. So, let’s have a look at three key battles to watch out for in this contest.

#1 Left-arm pacer Trent Boult vs India’s Top Three

Trent Boult has troubled India's Top three a number of times

It is a well-known fact that India’s Top three don’t have many weak points but one of their weaknesses is when a left-arm bowler is swinging the ball. It is not a weakness of any particular one of the three but all three struggle against a similar kind of bowler. The prime example was in the Champions Trophy Final in 2017 when Mohammad Amir found some swing. Even the Australians had a left-armer but fortunately for India Starc didn’t get any lateral movement at the start.

Trent Boult dismissed both Shikhar and Rohit in the practice game and they would be aware of this. As mentioned earlier, Trent Bridge is a flat wicket and it would be difficult for Boult to get much swing. But Boult is a world-class bowler and if he gets even a little bit of movement then India’s top three could come in trouble. It would be a battle worth watching when Boult will have the new ball against Shikhar and Rohit.

#2 Indian wrist-spinners vs The Kiwi middle-order

The Kiwis have a strong middle-order with good players of spin

If you rank the teams according to the strength of their middle-order then New Zealand will be close to the top. They have one of the strongest middle-orders with the likes of Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor, and Tom Latham. The famous Williamson-Taylor partnership has been instrumental in many victories for the Kiwis. Ross Taylor is by far the best No.4 in the world at the moment. His consistency has been phenomenal.

On the other hand, India's two wrist-spinners who have been their main weapon in the middle-overs. They have changed so many games by picking up wickets in the middle overs. Whenever Chahal and Kuldeep work as a pair it is a treat to watch. Latham and Williamson are really good players of spin. Williamson uses his feet to good effect whereas Latham is likely to use the sweep frequently. It is going to be a mouth-watering contest when the Indian spinners come up against the Kiwi middle-order on Thursday.

#3 Hardik Pandya vs Mitchell Santner

Hardik Pandya loves taking on the spinners

This will be a contest between muscle power and a sharp mind. Mitchell Santner is one of the smartest spinners going around in the world. He varies his line, length and pace to outfox the batsmen. He knows when to bowl the quicker one and when to loop the ball.

But on the other hand, Hardik Pandya loves taking on the spinners. He has smashed many international spinners for consecutive sixes. If the Indian top-order sets a platform similar to what they did against Australia then Pandya will be given the license to attack from the word go. Then a finger-spinner like Santner will have his work cut out.

Hardik Pandya taking on Mitchell Santner will be a contest not to miss as something exciting will definitely take place in this key battle.