Ishan Kishan replaced Suryakumar Yadav in the playing XI
Virat Kohli lost the toss against New Zealand captain Kane Williamson and the Indians have been asked to bat first. India were put into bat by Pakistan too and what followed was a disastrous result for Kohli’s team as Pakistan steamrolled the Indians by 10 wickets. The dew plays a huge factor in Dubai and captains therefore tend to put the opposition in after winning the toss. Kohli though put up a brave front and said that his team will look to rectify the mistakes that were committed against Pakistan. This is a huge match as the losing team might be in danger of missing out on a semi-final spot.
“We would have bowled first as well. We need a solid start and need to have wickets in hand. It’s ridiculous, we are playing twice in 10 days. The guys have recovered well. It’s another opportunity to come out and correct the mistakes,” Kohli said after losing the toss.
When asked about his playing XI, Kohli mentioned that there are two changes in his team from the line-up that faced Pakistan. The in-form Shardul Thakur was included in place of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, while swashbuckling opening batsman Ishan Kishan was drafted into the team in place of Suryakumar Yadav, who was down with back spasm.
“Two changes. One forced, Surya has back spasm, so Ishan Kishan will replace him and open the batting. Shardul Thakur replaces Bhuvi,” Kohli said.
The big update though was the fact that Kishan would open the innings, which means one of the two between KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma will come down the order at the number 4 spot.
Hardik Pandya also kept his place in the playing XI and it will be interesting to see if he bowls in this match as he has been bowling in the nets in the run up to this encounter.
Promoted
New Zealand too made a change in their line-up from the loss against Pakistan. Wicket-keeper Tim Seifert made way for paceman Adam Milne, whose pace could be handful against the Indians.
“We are going to bowl, dew factor at this time of the year. Look forward to another challenge. One change, Adam Milne comes in for Tim Seifert. Just to balance our bowling attack. Conway will keep,” Williamson said.
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