India Wins Toss Against New Zealand, Opts to Bowl First in T20 Series Opener
India chooses to bowl first after winning the toss against New Zealand in the first T20 match of the series in Christchurch.
Christchurch, October 22 (Daily Kiran) : India and New Zealand have kicked off their five-match T20 series in Christchurch. On Thursday, at Hagley Oval, Indian captain Shreyas Iyer won the toss and opted to bowl first.
Following the toss, Iyer stated, “We will bowl first. We need to see how the wicket plays.” The playing XI saw the return of Nitish Reddy and Mayank Yadav.
Notably, fast bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar made his comeback to the T20 squad after four years. His last appearance was also against New Zealand in New Zealand. Alongside him, Arshdeep Singh and Mayank Yadav joined the pace attack. Nitish Reddy will provide additional support, while Naman Dhir and Axar Patel will handle the spin bowling duties.
Vaibhav Suryavanshi was once again left out of the playing XI.
New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner remarked during the toss, “We were also looking to bowl first. The wicket seems fresh. Everyone is excited for this big series. It’s cool to play against India. Our depth is very good, and our middle order is strong.”
The New Zealand playing XI features Finn Allen, Tim Seifert (wicketkeeper), Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Bevan Jacobs, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner (captain), Nathan Smith, Adam Milne, Matt Henry, and Lockie Ferguson.
India’s playing XI includes Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer (captain), Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Naman Dhir, Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, and Mayank Yadav.
