The Black Caps and England square off in their first meeting since the dramatic end to the 2019 Cricket World Cup final when they meet in a T20I at the Hagley Oval, in Christchurch.
England arrive with an eye on the future, more specifically the T20 World Cup and have a few fresh faces in the pack.
Photo Copyright – Steve Haag Sports
First T20I | Friday 1 November 2019 | Hagley Oval, Christchurch | 03:00
To Win Match
New Zealand 82/100
Tie 35/1
England 21/20
New Zealand
When you cast an eye on the Black Caps squad there aren’t too many names that stand out but as a unit they have proven tough to beat in all three formats of the game.
Like England, they will have an eye on the T20 World Cup more than revenge for the Super Over defeat at Lord’s earlier this year.
Colin Munro warmed up for the series by smashing a hundred against England pointing to a return to form for the Kiwis most dangerous batsman.
Lockie Ferguson and Tim Southee have the makings of a terrific new-ball partnership. The Black Caps could match Ferguson’s pace and aggression with the wiles of the stand-in skipper up front but they may also deploy Ish Sodhi up front to expose the England top-order to spin.
England
New Zealand generously provided England with some stiff competition in their two T20 warm-up matches. The tourists won the first before being blitzed by a Munro ton in the second.
The warm-ups underlined the weakness of England’s top order in the absence of Jos Buttler who has been rested. England have touted T20 Blast leading runscorer, Tom Banton, as Buttler’s replacement.
England’s top-order need to set a decent tempo to ensure they don’t leave all the hitting to the allrounders as emphasized by Munro’s demolition of the tourists attack in the second warm-up.
That bowling attack will not include Jofra Archer but we should see Adil Rashid in the hunt for wickets through the so-called ‘middle’ period of the innings. England have chosen a young bowling attack including the Curran brothers and three uncapped seamers.
Verdict: New Zealand 82/100
New Zealand’s experience and knowledge of conditions should trump England.
Written by James Richardson for Hollywoodbets.
