India's quest for an ICC World Cup begins on Friday, October 4 and they will have to move past New Zealand in their campaign opener at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. The Women in Blue are high on confidence and would love to hit the ground running in the scorching heat of Dubai.
The positive for India is that they won both their warm-up matches against quality opponents. Team India defeated West Indies by 20 runs and blanked South Africa by 28 runs to claim their second consecutive win in the lead-up to the marquee tournament.
The Indian fans can also breathe a sigh of relief as the head coach Amol Muzumdar and skipper Harmanpreet Kaur have finally resolved the number three conundrum. Harmanpreet Kaur has taken the onus on herself to provide the team with the kind of stability it requires at number three.
Harmanpreet's decision is going to witness a shuffle in India's middle order. With Harmanpreet set to bat at three, it will provide Jemimah Rodrigues to move up the order and showcase her skills at four. Jemimah won't mind the change as she has been doing really well at five lately and has learnt the art of keeping the scoreboard moving at a brisk pace.
India women vs New Zealand head-to-head record in T20Is
India's head-to-head record against New Zealand in T20Is doesn't make for a good reading. The Women in Blue have won only four out of the 13 matches that they have played against the White Ferns and have tasted defeat on nine occasions. However, New Zealand have lost their last ten T20Is and therefore will be diffident coming into the match against India.
India squad:
Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Yastika Bhatia (wk), Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh (wk), Pooja Vastrakar, Arundhati Reddy, Renuka Singh, D Hemalatha, Asha Sobhana, Radha Yadav, Shreyanka Patil, Sajeevan Sajana
New Zealand squad:
Sophie Devine (c), Suzie Bates, Eden Carson, Isabella Gaze (wk), Maddy Green, Brooke Halliday, Fran Jonas, Leigh Kasperek, Jess Kerr, Amelia Kerr, Rosemary Mair, Molly Penfold, Georgia Plimmer, Hannah Rowe, Lea Tahuhu
