Time for the victory lap: India aim to maintain unbeaten run in Auckland as New Zealand look to avoid whitewash
toi
newspoint|30-10-2026
The series is settled. Now it's time for some fun. Team India, the Harlem Globetrotters of world cricket, have continued their march through New Zealand, arriving from humid home conditions just a day before the series began and making it 3-0 in style over the course of just a week, which teams would normally use to acclimatise to foreign conditions.
After the stupendous feasts the batters enjoyed on the drop-in pitches in Christchurch and Wellington, the focus shifts to unique Eden Park in Auckland, a ground originally built with rugby in mind.
The straight boundaries here are probably only a little longer than your backyard, while the longer square boundaries will test the power of India's hitmen. New Zealand's bowlers will need the motivation to bend their backs after watching India chase 199 in 13.2 overs on Tuesday.
The Black Caps are already hampered by the absence of experienced pacers Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson, both sidelined by injury, and the Indian batters should be licking their lips.
Ravi Shastri said on air the other day that a question he gets asked often in New Zealand is: "Will that 15-year-old play?" Wellington fans got a glimpse of the young sensation as he smashed a 19-ball 45 in the third game, an innings that, remarkably, played second fiddle to Abhishek Sharma's 38-ball 113.
Sooryavanshi's opportunity came because of Ishan Kishan's injury, but Indian spin legend R Ashwin feels that if the Jharkhand batter returns to the XI, Sanju Samson should reclaim his opening slot and Vaibhav should miss out.
That's cold cricket analysis. The Indian diaspora that will troop to Eden Park on Friday evening will surely hope to enjoy another Vaibhav feast, perhaps this time in a lead role. His ability to generate incredible power against the short ball, along with his straight-hitting, should be enough for the team management to let the fun continue.
If Gautam Gambhir and Co. are serious about testing the temperament and skill of the Indian pace attack, Eden Park should be an ideal venue. If the pitch remains a belter, as it often is in T20Is in New Zealand, the Indian quicks' ability to hit a hard length will be tested.
Landing yorkers, both wide and at the stumps, is one of this attack's strengths. But at Eden Park, they have to be inch-perfect: a slight error in length can turn a delivery into a gift that sails into the stands.
Ahead of practice on Thursday, India vice-captain Tilak Varma said the team was impressed by how Prince Yadav and the other bowlers had landed their yorkers.
"They have been brilliant at the back end, especially Prince with the yorkers. But Eden Park is new for many of us, and we'll have to work out the right length once we understand the pitch," said Varma, who has been phenomenal with his finishing in the series.
Paceman Mayank Yadav was left out of the last two games after returning figures of 1/49 in the first. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, on his return, has conceded 49, 50 and 40 runs in the three games he has played, taking one wicket.
Mayank's burst of pace could come in handy. With the series already won, it would not be a bad time for the team management to look to the future.
After the stupendous feasts the batters enjoyed on the drop-in pitches in Christchurch and Wellington, the focus shifts to unique Eden Park in Auckland, a ground originally built with rugby in mind.
The straight boundaries here are probably only a little longer than your backyard, while the longer square boundaries will test the power of India's hitmen. New Zealand's bowlers will need the motivation to bend their backs after watching India chase 199 in 13.2 overs on Tuesday.
The Black Caps are already hampered by the absence of experienced pacers Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson, both sidelined by injury, and the Indian batters should be licking their lips.
Ravi Shastri said on air the other day that a question he gets asked often in New Zealand is: "Will that 15-year-old play?" Wellington fans got a glimpse of the young sensation as he smashed a 19-ball 45 in the third game, an innings that, remarkably, played second fiddle to Abhishek Sharma's 38-ball 113.
Sooryavanshi's opportunity came because of Ishan Kishan's injury, but Indian spin legend R Ashwin feels that if the Jharkhand batter returns to the XI, Sanju Samson should reclaim his opening slot and Vaibhav should miss out.
That's cold cricket analysis. The Indian diaspora that will troop to Eden Park on Friday evening will surely hope to enjoy another Vaibhav feast, perhaps this time in a lead role. His ability to generate incredible power against the short ball, along with his straight-hitting, should be enough for the team management to let the fun continue.
If Gautam Gambhir and Co. are serious about testing the temperament and skill of the Indian pace attack, Eden Park should be an ideal venue. If the pitch remains a belter, as it often is in T20Is in New Zealand, the Indian quicks' ability to hit a hard length will be tested.
Landing yorkers, both wide and at the stumps, is one of this attack's strengths. But at Eden Park, they have to be inch-perfect: a slight error in length can turn a delivery into a gift that sails into the stands.
Ahead of practice on Thursday, India vice-captain Tilak Varma said the team was impressed by how Prince Yadav and the other bowlers had landed their yorkers.
"They have been brilliant at the back end, especially Prince with the yorkers. But Eden Park is new for many of us, and we'll have to work out the right length once we understand the pitch," said Varma, who has been phenomenal with his finishing in the series.
Paceman Mayank Yadav was left out of the last two games after returning figures of 1/49 in the first. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, on his return, has conceded 49, 50 and 40 runs in the three games he has played, taking one wicket.
Mayank's burst of pace could come in handy. With the series already won, it would not be a bad time for the team management to look to the future.
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