News
Wed 22 Aug 2012, 11:59 am
Summary
Hosts seek improved performance in Tests beginning with series against Kiwis
What
The first of the two-match Test series between India and New Zealand.
When
August 23-27, 2012. The game begins at 9:30 am, IST.
Where
The Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Uppal, Hyderabad. The only Test match played at this venue involved both teams playing out a draw in the second Test of the 2010 series. The buzz, however, for this Test is that the wicket will take turn, giving the Indian spinners a chance to put the Kiwi batsmen under pressure and force a result.
The Teams
Both teams have fared relatively disappointingly in Tests in recent months. India were trounced by Australia 4-0 earlier in the year, while New Zealand are coming off consecutive series losses to South Africa and West Indies.
India’s biggest challenge ahead of this match is to get their batting combination right in the post Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman era. With Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli certain to play, possibly at No. 3 and No. 5 respectively, the toss up would be between Suresh Raina and S Badrinath for batting at No. 6. However, if the team management decides to be more audacious, there is a chance that Ajinkya Rahane opens with Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag bats down the order.
New Zealand will miss the services of Daniel Vettori, who is out with a groin injury. And therein lies the Kiwis’ biggest weakness, whether they can take 20 wickets to win a Test against India. Jeetan Patel was in outstanding form for Warwickshire, but there is much doubt whether he can repeat his success against the hosts, who are, arguably, the best players of spin in the world. The Kiwi pacers – Chris Martin, Trent Boult, Tim Southee, Neil Wagner and Doug Bracewell – therefore, will have to step up and fill in for Vettori’s absence.
Key players
With Dravid and Laxman not available any longer, there will be extra pressure on Sachin Tendulkar to hold the middle-order together. Sachin will have to shoulder the additional responsibility not just in terms of runs, but also by guiding the youngsters around him in coping with the challenges of batting in Tests.
The Kiwis will depend to a large extent on Brendon McCullum to shore up their batting fortunes. And now with Ross Taylor having confirmed that McCullum will partner Martin Guptill at the top of the order, it will be imperative that the swashbuckling batsman uses his experience of Indian conditions to give his side a solid platform right through the series.
Trivia:
Zaheer Khan is 12 wickets shy of reaching the 300-wicket mark. If he gets to the milestone in this series, Zaheer will be only the fourth Indian bowler, behind Kapil Dev, Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh, to get to 300 wickets in Tests.
Martin Guptill is the leading run-getter among players in both teams in Tests in 2012. At 450 runs form 11 innings, Guptill is 161 runs clear of Virat Kohli who is the leading run-getter for India in Tests in 2012.
Venue Stats:
Team | Played | Won | Lost | Tied | Drawn | Win %age |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
India | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.00 |
New Zealand | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.00 |
Highest total in an innings: India 472 all out in 143.4 overs v New Zealand - November 12, 2010
Lowest total in an innings: New Zealand 350 all out in 117.3 overs v India - November 12, 2010
Best individual score in an innings: Brendon McCullum (New Zealand) – 225 v India - November 12, 2010
Best bowling figures in an innings: Daniel Vettori (New Zealand) 49.4-7-135-5 v India – November 12, 2010
Head-to-head:
Matches | Played | India won | NZ won | Drawn | Tied |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Overall | 50 | 16 | 9 | 25 | 0 |
In India | 29 | 11 | 2 | 16 | 0 |
At Hyderabad | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Last meeting between both sides: Nagpur, November 20-23, 2010
Brief scores: New Zealand 193 & 175 lost toIndia 566/8 decl. by an innings and 198 runs
Form guide (most recent listed first):
India: Lost, Lost, Lost, Lost, Drawn (4 losses, 1 draw)
New Zealand: Lost, Lost, Drawn, Lost, Drawn (3 losses, 2 draws)
The Squads:
India: MS Dhoni (c & wk), SR Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Zaheer Khan, Pragyan Ojha, Virat Kohli, Cheteshwar Pujara, S Badrinath, SK Raina, Ishant Sharma, R Ashwin, Piyush Chawla, Ajinkya Rahane, Umesh Yadav
New Zealand: Ross Taylor (c), Trent Boult, Doug Bracewell, Daniel Flynn, James Franklin, Martin Guptill, Chris Martin, Brendon McCullum, Tarun Nethula, Jeetan Patel, Tim Southee, Kruger van Wyk (wk), Neil Wagner, BJ Watling, Kane Williamson
All stats are as onAugust 22, 2012
