Team India and New Zealand are ready to lock horns in the first T20I of three-match series in Wellington on Friday. However, there's some bad news for fans of both teams as there are high chances of rain playing spoilsport in the encounter.
While the Men in Blue are coming into this contest on the back of a 10-wicket loss at the hands of eventual T20 World Cup champs England in the semifinals, their rivals New Zealand also exited the tournament in the semis, losing by 7 wickets to Pakistan.
Both sides will be hoping to bounce back to winning ways but it seems that the rain gods have other ideas.
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Rain likely to interrupt IND vs NZ 1st T20I
According to weather reports from Accuweather, there is a 79% chance of precipitation during the evening, while there is a 96% chance of rain throughout the day, which means that rain may well end up playing spoilsport.
The weather in Wellington could well turn out to be a problem as both India and New Zealand will hope to get a game, even if it's a reduced one.
India vs New Zealand: Preview
Hardik Pandya-led Team India will be looking to win against Kane Williamson New Zealand, who are likely to pose a big threat to the Men in Blue. Despite their loss against Pakistan, the Kiwis remain the team to beat, as they qualified for the semifinals of T20 World Cup 2022 with wins over Australia, and Sri Lanka among others.
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With the likes of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and other senior players rested, it's an opportunity for young guns like Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan and others to consolidate their place in the side, especially now that the road to 2024 T20 World Cup has begun.
There could be many changes, including that of the leadership, with Pandya primed to take over the captaincy in the shortest format from Rohit, but apart from that, plenty of faces like Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer have a point to prove.
