Team India slipped from their winning streak on January 28 as New Zealand got their first win in the ongoing 5-match T20I series after being defeated in the previous three games. The win against India, ahead of the ICC T20 World Cup 2026, will boost the confidence level of the Kiwis.
As we know, a coin has two opposite sides, just as the result of a match. If the India vs. New Zealand 4th T20I brings joy to the New Zealand camp, it can raise a lot of questions for the Indian cricket team. On most of the occasions, in the T20I format, India won easily whenever Abhishek Sharma performed swiftly. Last night, in Visakhapatnam, Sharma failed to deliver, and India eventually lost the match. Against New Zealand’s first innings of 215, India could get only 165 runs in 18.4 overs before losing their last batter.
Ahead of the 2026 World Cup and the India vs. New Zealand 5th T20I, the home team must prepare itself, keeping any circumstances in mind. In any case, Abhishek Sharma lost his wicket early in the match, so it was the duty of the other batters to carry the team on their shoulders.
India Playing XI vs New Zealand – 5th T20I:
Openers: Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson.
Team India in T20I without Abhishek Sharma does not sound good. The left-handed batter toyed with the New Zealand bowlers in the first three matches of the series before being dismissed for a golden duck during the fourth match. It is wrong to expect someone to score runs in every game.
Like any other cricketer on the planet, Sharma too can have a bad day in the field. As the team and the fans have a lot of expectations of him, the batter himself will try to play according to his potential. In his opening half, Sanju Samson finally got some notable runs last night, after a 3-match run drought.
Middle-order: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh.
For the fourth game, the Indian team management left Ishan Kishan, who had a niggle, on the sideline to offer Arshdeep Singh some game time ahead of the 2026 World Cup. Like Sharma, Yadav, and Pandya, who are also performing promisingly, underperformed in Vishakhapatnam. Rinku added some valuable runs, while Dube smashed a half-century. The batters, who suddenly lost their wickets cheaply, will try to bounce back, as the fifth T20I will be their last bilateral T20I match before the marquee event.
Bowlers: Harshit Rana, Ravi Bishnoi, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, and Jasprit Bumrah.
Bowlers also had a tough outing last night. Rana, Bishnoi proved too expensive against the New Zealand batters. In the presence of 5 specialist bowlers, the visitors claimed well over two hundred runs on the board.
India Playing XI: Sanju Samson (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Harshit Rana, Ravi Bishnoi, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, and Jasprit Bumrah.
New Zealand Playing XI vs India—5th T20I:
Openers: Devon Conway and Tim Seifert.
The New Zealand cricket team can be more dangerous in the last match of the series as they are finally touched by a ray of hope. The team management has been constantly showing their trust in a fixed set of players. Conway and Seifert, who had been struggling in the series, bagged some valuable runs and mostly found the mojo they were lacking the most.
Middle order: Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell.
Rachin Ravindra is yet to revive his form. For the fourth match, New Zealand scored 215, but Ravindra got only 2 runs. The 5th match of the series can be his last opportunity to get his rhythm back. Apart from Ravindra, the other middle-order batters of the lineup more or less accumulated a significant amount of runs overall.
Bowlers: Mitchell Santner (c), Kyle Jamieson, Matt Henry, Ish Sodhi, Jacob Duffy.
The NZ bowlers were equally impressive, like their batters in the previous encounter. Skipper Mitchell Santner, who also had a poor run, bagged 3 valuable wickets. Matt Henry helped the team get rid of Abhishek Sharma instantly. The other full-time bowlers also left their contributions on a positive note in the match.
New Zealand Playing XI: Devon Conway, Tim Seifert (wk), Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, Mitchell Santner (c), Kyle Jamieson, Matt Henry, Ish Sodhi, and Jacob Duffy.
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