All eyes on Ashish Nehra as T20I series set to kick-start

After a scintillating ODI Series between India and New Zealand, where the contest between the teams gone, all the way to a nail bitter in the decider, India held their nerve to pinch the Series.  Now, teams face off in a 3-match T20Is series, which is set to kick-start in Delhi, on Wednesday.

The first T20I in Delhi have a lot of things at Stakes for India, as there isn't any official confirmation, whether, Ashish Nehra could be part of Playing XI in his final appearance for the country. Adding to that, India set to play their first T20I in the capital city, and for an irony, New Zealand set to play their second.

Of what we have seen in the ODI Series, Kiwis were well prepared and executed their plans for perfection to trouble the hosts. And, now, in a format where India haven't won a T20I against Kiwis, it's gonna be even more evenly contested, as the Visitors, top the table in T20I Rankings, while India placed at No.5 on the table.

Team News

India

              All eyes will on Ashish Nehra, whether, he will be part of Playing XI or not, if he makes it, India may have to change the combination of the side, that will leave Hardik Pandya out, as India doesn't have a part-time option in Top.6 with Kedar Jadhav being left out of T20Is.

Apart from the above, Indian management has another selection process to handle, between Manish Pandey, Dinesh Karthik, and Shreyas Iyer to pick only two Players.

Playing XI :1 Rohit Sharma, 2 Shikhar Dhawan, 3 Virat Kohli (capt), 4,5 Dinesh Karthik/ Manish Pandey/ Shreyas Iyer, 6 MS Dhoni(wk), 7 Hardik Pandya/ Asish Nehra, 8 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 9 Axar Patel, 10 Yuzvendra Chahal, 11 Jasprit Bumrah

New Zealand

              On the other hand, Kiwis, have lot fewer issues, when comes to picking their Playing XI. The only decision that might thinker them is, whether, to play an additional spinner instead of a pacer.

Playing XI:1 Martin Guptill, 2 Colin Munro, 3 Kane Williamson (capt), 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Tom Latham (wk), 6 Henry Nicholls, 7 Colin de Grandhomme, 8 Mitchell Santner, 9 Adam Milne/ Ish Sodhi, 10 Trent Boult, 11 Tim Southee

Pitch and Conditions

                       

               It will be interesting to see, what type of pitch the DDCA, puts in store for India’s first T20I at the Venue. While different surfaces had been produced during the World T20 in 2016, and in IPL, either, it's a run-fest or a spinning track. But for sure at this time in the capital city, dew will play a large part, to help the batsman.

Conclusion

            So there is a lot at Stakes, in the first T20I of the 3-match Series, as India have few decisions to take regarding their Playing XI. While, Kiwis hope to continue their good work going on this tour and keep the record intact against the hosts in T20Is, but India will seek to break it.