ICC Men’s CWC 2023: Can India take revenge of the 2019 WC semi-loss against New Zealand?
The 21st match of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 will be played between India and New Zealand on October 22 at Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala. Both teams have won their first four matches in this World Cup. However, at the end of this match, one team will break the other’s envious winning streak.
Head-to-Head
India and New Zealand have played 116 ODIs against each other since 1975, of which India have won 58, New Zealand have won 50, one match ended in a tie, and seven matches did not produce result. In India, these two teams have played 38 ODIs against each other, of which India have won 29 and New Zealand have won eight, with one match not producing a result. At the World Cups, New Zealand lead 5-3 against India.
| Particulars | India | New Zealand |
| ICC ODI Rankings | 1 | 5 |
| Wins in ODIs | 58 | 50 |
| Wins in ODIs (in India) | 29 | 8 |
| At World Cups | 3 | 5 |
Performance in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 so far…
India and New Zealand will play their fifth match of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023, having won all their previous four matches. While New Zealand have been convincing either while chasing or defending the score, India, so far have not yet been tested for their ability to defend the target.
| Match number | India | New Zealand |
| 1 | Beat Australia by 6 wickets | Beat England by 9 wickets |
| 2 | Beat Afghanistan by 8 wickets | Beat Netherlands by 99 runs |
| 3 | Beat Pakistan by 7 wickets | Beat Bangladesh by 8 wickets |
| 4 | Beat Bangladesh by 7 wickets | Beat Afghanistan by 149 runs |
Squads
India: Rohit Sharma (c), Hardik Pandya, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav.
New Zealand: Kane Williamson (c)*, Trent Boult, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Mitch Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Will Young.
Injury updates
India’s all-rounder Hardik Pandya has been ruled out of the New Zealand match due to ankle injury. He suffered this injury while bowling against Bangladesh on October 19. For New Zealand, their regular captain Kane Williamson is likely to miss the India fixture. He fractured his left thumb during the match against Bangladesh on October 13 when a throw hit him. Tom Latham will lead New Zealand in Williamson’s absence.*
Playing conditions
Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala will host the encounter between India and New Zealand. It will be a day night match. In 2016, these two teams played against each other here, with India winning that match by 6 wickets.
The venue will host its fourth match of this tournament. Of the last three matches, the teams batting first have won two and the teams batting second have won one. Expect good batting surface and some help for the fast bowlers due to the forecast cloudy conditions.
Weather
The weather is expected to be cool with times of clouds and sun. There could be thunderstorms in the afternoon. The maximum temperature attained during the day will be 14 degrees Celsius. There will be 71% cloud cover. The probability of precipitation is 43%, with 26% chance of thunderstorms. The wind will blow from the north-west.
Players to watch out for
With 540 ODIs and over 23000 ODI runs between them, India’s captain Rohit Sharma and former captain Virat Kohli will grab all the attention. In this World Cup, they have been at their sublime best. In their last four matches, Rohit has scored 265 at an average of 66 and strike rate of 137, Kohli has scored 259 at an average of 130 and strike rate of 90. Among the bowlers, Jasprit Bumrah has been the standout bowler with 10 wickets in four matches.
New Zealand’s opening batter Devon Conway has been in the form of his life scoring runs at will. This left-handed batter has muscled 249 runs in his last four matches at an average of 83 and strike rate of 105. Among the bowlers, Mitchell Santner and Matt Henry have rattled the oppositions with their aggressive bowling in this World Cup so far. While Santner has 11 wickets in four matches, Henry has nine in his four outings.
Milestones alert
Virat Kohli is one century away from equalling Sachin Tendulkar’s record of most ODI centuries (49)
KL Rahul is 59 runs away from completing 2500 ODI runs
Shubman Gill is 14 runs away from completing 2000 ODI runs
Trent Boult needs 6 wickets to complete 50 wickets in World Cups
Tom Latham needs 82 runs to complete 4000 ODI runs
Match details
Date: October 22, 2023
Time: 2:00 PM IST
Venue: Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharamsala
Live streaming: Star Sports, Hotstar
All the statistics are sourced from ESPN Cricinfo