The New Zealand tour of India 2023 will start on Wednesday, January 18. The tour consists of three ODIs and as many T20Is. India have rested some of their senior players such as Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul. The visitors have also rested star players such as Kane Williamson and Tim Southee.
Hardik Pandya is the stand-in captain for India in the T20I series against New Zealand in the absence of Rohit. The Kiwis will be led by allrounder Mitchell Santner. Despite a number of star names missing, there is still an assurance of quality cricket because of the talent that will be on show from both sides. On that note, let’s take a look at the three match-ups that could decide the course of the T20Is.
Here are the three player-battles to watch out for in the IND vs NZ T20I series:
3. Glenn Phillips vs Yuzvendra Chahal
Glenn Phillips was simply sensational for the Kiwis in the 20-20 World Cup 2022, scoring 201 runs at a fantastic strike rate of 158.26. His standout performance was undoubtedly a hundred against quality spinners from Sri Lanka in Sydney during the Super 12s stage.
Phillips has shown that he has the game to dominate the spinners and his match-up against leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal could be crucial in the upcoming series. Chahal couldn’t even get a single game in the major tournament and will be keen to prove a point.
