India vs New Zealand, 2nd T20I Toss and Playing 11: Black Caps opt to field first in Mount Maunganui

The first T20I in Wellington was washed out after persistent rain. There is rain threat for this match as well. As for team news, New Zealand use a tried and tested eleven, while India led by Hardik Pandya line up with a very different team from their last T20 outing in the World Cup ten days ago.

After opting to bowl first, Williamson said: “Little bit of both – It’s been under covers for a large part, and also potentially some weather around (his decision to bowl). Adam Milne comes in. Great opportunity for him. Other than that we’re unchanged from the last one. Always a great occasion when you get to play against India.”

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After being asked to bat first, India captain Pandya said: “To get a game, a proper 20-over game, is exciting. We still need to assess the conditions and see how the wicket is behaving.

“If the wicket doesn’t help you, and you try playing shots and lose wickets, and it doesn’t rain, you might be in a difficult position. We’ll assess the situation, and if the rain comes, we’ll reassess.

“I don’t think in international cricket, if you come, I don’t think pace or bounce makes a difference now. It’s challenging. But you have the skillset to cope up with it in international cricket.”

At the pitch report, former India batter Ajay Jadeja reckoned the wicket will help the team batting first.

“Normally it’s dry and brown. It still looks hard. But what I see is a little extra grass on there. So maybe a bit of grip and spin as well with the moisture in there. We’ve got no sun coming out. Pitch is going to stay the same. I think it’s a bat first pitch,” said Jadeja.

“Looks to be an absolute belter. There is a cover of grass that should help the surface to hold together and the best part is that it’s a rock-hard surface. The average score here has been 157 but this looks a high-scoring track.”

India vs New Zealand 2nd T20I Playing 11s:

India (Playing XI): Ishan Kishan, Rishabh Pant (wicketkeeper), Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Deepak Hooda, Hardik Pandya (captain), Washington Sundar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj, Yuzvendra Chahal.

New Zealand (Playing XI): Finn Allen, Devon Conway (wicketkeeper), Kane Williamson (captain), Glenn Phillips, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Adam Milne, Lockie Ferguson.