Three Player battles to watch out for in the India vs New Zealand series

India vs New Zealand (Source: Twitter)

Shortly after their heartbreaking exit from the 20-20 World Cup in 2022, India will now face their next assignment against New Zealand in New Zealand. The Men in Blue will begin the tour with a three-match T20I series and the team will be led by Hardik Pandya. 

The Indian team will bear a different look as the senior players such as Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have been rested to manage their workloads. India had a successful T20 series against the Kiwis last time, beating them 5-0 in 2020.

Here, we will have a look at three-player battles in the upcoming T20 series:

1. Hardik Pandya vs Lockie Ferguson:

Hardik Pandya vs Lockie Ferguson (Source: Twitter)

Hardik Pandya showed outstanding form in the recently concluded World Cup where he scored 128 runs in 6 matches with highest score of 63 not-out in the semi-final against England. He will now go against his former teammate at the Gujarat franchise, Lockie Ferguson.

In the Indian T20 League, they have clashed once against each other, and Ferguson got the better off Pandya. It will be a mouth-watering contest as friends will turn foes in a bid to outdo the other.

2. Shubman Gill vs Adam Milne 

Shubman Gill vs Adam Milne (Source: Twitter)

Shubman Gill has been in ominous form in white-ball cricket. He enjoyed a great Indian T20 League season in 2022 for the Gujarat franchise where he scored 483 runs in 16 matches. Now, he has been given a chance to make an impact in overseas conditions.

Adam Milne, on the other hand, has picked up 35 wickets in T20Is and has been a vital cog in the kiwi bowling lineup. He has been selected ahead of Trent Boult as the latter chose to forgo his New Zealand contract. Milne will be looking to get some early wickets with the new ball for his side in the 20-20 series.

3. Bhuvneshwar Kumar vs Finn Allen

Bhuvneshwar Kumar vs Finn Allen (Source: Twitter)

Bhuvneshwar Kumar has played the role of a pace spearhead in the bowling line-up and will look to do the same again in New Zealand. He has picked up 89 wickets in the format and will look to get back to good form and add more to his tally in the upcoming T20 series.

The conditions in New Zealand will work to his benefit as it will swing there. Finn Allen has shown his impact in the 20-20 World Cup 2022, where he scored 95 runs, including a game-changing 42 while opening the batting in the game against Australia.

He also had an Indian T20 League stint at Bangalore where he worked on polishing his game. It will be interesting to see how he shapes up against India. He can be a threat to India due to his dynamic stroke play.