The second ODI of the five-match ODI series between the hosts New Zealand and the visitors India will be played on Saturday (26 January) at Bay Oval (Mount Maunganui). It will be a day/night encounter which will begin at 15:00 local time (07:30 IST).

Currently, the visiting side India is leading the series by 1-0 after securing a comfortable victory (by 8 wickets) in the first ODI of the series at Napier last Wednesday.

New Zealand cricket team

The host side New Zealand cricket team had the disastrous performances in the first ODI of the series at Napier. They neither performed competitively in batting nor in bowling/fielding.

In the Napier ODI, the host batting line-up widely failed as only the experienced batsmen Kane Williamson (64) and Ross Taylor (24) have managed to play the 20-run marks. Though it is not the panic situation for them as the other batsmen have the abilities to play big knocks, the other batsmen have to take more responsibilities for the side.

Also read: Trent Boult Calls To Create Early Pressure With The New Balls

The front-line Kiwi bowlers failed to pick-up quick wickets in the first ODI but they have also the abilities to dominate against any kind of team.

The host side also needs to focus to strengthen their deepness in both the batting and bowling units.

Form guide (last five ODIs; starting with most recent): Lost, Won, Won, Won and No Result 

Indian cricket team

The no.2 ranked ODI team India is in a very good form at present. They dominated in the Napier ODI and set to continue their dominating journey.

Also read: Shikhar Dhawan: We Have Very High Competition Within The National Team

The bowlers are in very good form, though the Indian captain Virat Kohli still has to seriously look out for the third pacer while Jasprit Bumrah is not in the squad. While the other main pacers, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammed Shami are running in the good form, the regular spinner Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal are doing the excellent job in the middle overs, even outside the Asian soil.

The Indian top-order batsmen are in very good form at the recent time. Also, the middle-order batsmen have enough ODI experiences and they are ready to handle any situation.

Form guide (last five ODIs; starting with most recent): Won, Won, Won, Lost and Won

Also read: Smriti Mandhana: If I’d Scored Three Runs I Would Have Been A Lot Happier

Full squads

New Zealand: Kane Williamson (capt), Trent Boult, Doug Bracewell, Colin de Grandhomme, Lockie Ferguson, Martin Guptill, Matt Henry, Tom Latham (wk), Colin Munro, Henry Nicholls, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor

India: Virat Kohli (capt), Rohit Sharma (vc), Khaleel Ahmed, Yuzvendra Chahal, Shikhar Dhawan, MS Dhoni (wk), Shubman Gill, Ravindra Jadeja, Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ambati Rayudu, Vijay Shankar, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Hardik Pandya

Predicted Pitch Report

Generally, the Bay Oval track allows a good stroke play for the batsmen and it is expected to maintain the same character on Saturday.

Weather Forecast

The weather is expected to be cloudy with the temperature of mid 20 degree Celsius. There is no rain threat and it is expected that we can experience the full game without any interruption.

Key Stats Preview:

• New Zealand has played six ODIs at Bay Oval (Mount Maunganui) where they won three matches and lost the other three matches.
• India hasn’t played an international match at Bay Oval (Mount Maunganui).
• The left-arm New Zealand pacer Trent Boult (93 wickets) is two wickets away to become the most wicket-taker as a left-arm pacer in the home ODI history. Former Indian left-arm pacer Zaheer Khan is on the top of this list with 94 ODI wickets at home.
• New Zealand left-arm pacer Trent Boult (399 international wickets) needs one more wicket to claim 400 international wickets. After the left-arm spinner Daniel Vettori (696 international wickets), Boult will be the second New Zealand left-arm bowler to pick up 400 or more international wickets. Also, Boult will be the fifth New Zealand bowler in overall to pick up 400 or more international wickets.
• New Zealand right-arm pacer Tim Southee (26 wickets) is two wickets away to become the second most wicket-taking bowler for New Zealand against India in ODI history.
• Indian skipper Virat Kohli (1,199 runs) needs to score nine more runs to become the second most run-scorer in the ODI history between India and New Zealand. While the former New Zealand batsman Nathan Astle (1,207 runs) is at the second position in this list, the legendary Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar (1,750 runs) is on top of this list.
• Indian skipper Virat Kohli (1,956 runs) is 44 runs away to become the second Indian skipper to score 2,000 or more away ODI runs (home of opposition; excluding neutral venues). Former Indian skipper MS Dhoni is the record holder who scored 2,846 ODI runs as captain at the away venues.
• Indian cricketer Kedar Jadhav (945 runs) needs to score 55 runs to complete 1,000 ODI runs.