After beating UAE 2-1 away from home in a three-match T20I series, New Zealand turns their attention towards the ICC T20 World Champions England as they square off in a four-match T20I series. The first match will be played at the Riverside Ground in Durham on Wednesday.
Post the T20I series, the two sides will lock horns in a four-match ODI series in preparation for the more important 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup. In the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup, England and New Zealand played each other in the finals with the former coming out on top on the boundary count rule at the Super Over.
Both teams will put their best foot forward in the T20 leg of the tournament. New Zealand suffered an upset loss to UAE in their second T20I match of the series. England, on the other hand, will resume their international duties after their 2-2 draw in the Ashes. Their players have been busy participating in the Hundred which finished on Sunday.
What have they done so far?
New Zealand toured UAE with a second-string squad in a three-match T20I series that saw them come out on top with a 2-1 margin. Finn Allen, Devon Conway, Matt Henry, Adam Milne, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, and Ish Sodhi were left out of the UAE series but will make their return while facing England.
In the first T20I, New Zealand was restricted to a score of 155-6 after Reaching Ravindra and Cole McConchie put up a brave 46-run unbeaten partnership for the last wicket. UAE were all out for 136 as Tim Southee bagged a five-wicket haul.
New Zealand suffered a shock upset loss in the second T20I as they were restricted to 142-8 with Mark Chapman’s innings of 63 runs off 46 balls being the only saving grace. UAE won the match with 26 balls remaining and seven wickets in hand.
Will Young and Mark Chapman’s half-centuries guided New Zealand to a score of 166-5 in the third T20I before UAE fell short at 134 with a combined bowling effort of the Kiwi bowlers.
Coming to England, they last played T20I cricket in the month of March 2023 where they lost to Bangladesh 3-0 away from home. They levelled the Ashes 2-2 before taking a break in the month of August.
England’s batting looked sub-par on the subcontinent pitches as Bangladesh dominated the series dismissing the English batters and restricting the visitors to low scores throughout the series.
Key Players
Tim Southee is the highest wicket-taker in T20I history
Tim Southee: If it were not for Tim Southee, New Zealand would have lost the first T20I as well against the UAE. The Black Caps skipper came up with timely wickets to bag a five-wicket haul and help his side win by a margin of 19 runs.
He let his guard down in the second T20I and that resulted in an upset loss against UAE. In the third T20I, he notched a maiden over and kept his economy at 6 runs per over.
Jos Buttler: Jos Buttler scored a swashbuckling 82 off 46 deliveries in the Eliminator of the Hundred to help Manchester Originals chase down 197. Moreover, they got it done with four balls to spare.
Buttler would like to continue his form for his nation when England takes on New Zealand.
Head to Head record
There have been 23 T20I encounters between England and New Zealand from which England have gained the upper hand 14 times. The Black Caps have won 8 times against the Three Lions.
The two sides last locked horns with each other in the World T20 championships Super 12 stage at the Gabba. It was England who once again came out on top. Batting first, England scored 179-6 with Jos Buttler and Alex Hales putting up 73 and 52 runs respectively at the top. Liam Livingstone was the only other batter to score 20 runs for England.
Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi kept their economy at 6.25 and 5.25 respectively in that match. Trent Southee, Tim Southee, and Lockie Ferguson were taken to the cleaners in that match.
New Zealand tumbled at 159-6 as Chris Woakes and Sam Curran took two wickets each. Glenn Phillips scored 62 off 36 deliveries. Kane Williamson absorbed a lot of deliveries and scored only 40 off 40 balls and hit only three boundaries.
Predicted XIs
England: Jos Buttler © (wk), Ben Duckett, Dawid Malan, Harry Brook, Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali, Chris Jordan, Sam Curran, Adil Rashid, Luke Wood, Rehan Ahmed
New Zealand: Finn Allen, Devon Conway (wk), Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee ©, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry
Prediction
The England players are fresh off their Hundred stints and are quite familiar with the pitches in England. They have a superior record against New Zealand historically and gained the upper hand in the previous encounter as well.
The Kiwis suffered a massive jolt when they lost to UAE for the first time in their career. Although they won the series, it looks tough that they can bounce back in time to face the World Champions England.