India Vs New Zealand T20 World Cup LIVE Updates: NZ win by 8 wickets with 33 balls to spare

New Zealand have outsmarted India even in the second innings. They won the match with more than five overs to spare.

Image: ICC/www.t20worldcup.com

It was a good day for New Zealand. They won the toss, match and hearts. With this eight wicket defeat, India's road ahead in the T20 World Cup looks like a really difficult task now.

New Zealand was very strict with its line and length in the first innings and they restricted India at 110 after losing seven wickets. Ravindra Jadeja hit some shots in the end but this total doesn't look enough to win this match at this point of time.

Virat Kohli-led Team India has made two changes today as Shardul Thakur and Ishan Kishan have come back in the team. The first match of the T20 World Cup didn't go well for India as it suffered a huge defeat against Pakistan on October 24, but today is the chance to recover from the setback.

While the Indian top order looked in serious trouble against quality swing bowling in the previous match in Dubai, New Zealand's condition was also not convincing against Pakistan. Both--India and New Zealand--struggled in picking the right length and whether to stand deep inside the crease or two steps ahead of it. 

Today's match might be different in the sense that both the teams will be looking for initial build up to acquire a safe position to launch the final assault. This means the teams are likely to prefer cautious approach over attacking batting from the word go.

New Zealand has Trent Boult who may cause the initial damage like Shaheen Shah Afridi. 

The form of the Indian openers--Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul--will also be under scanner. Virat Kohli, India's greatest hope in big matches for some years now, looked in good touch in the last match and the team would be expecting another scintillating knock from him.

In short, this might turn out to be a match between Kiwi bowlers and Indian batters. 

Who do you think has the upper hand in this match?

31 October 2021

22:33 IST

Ish Sodhi has been declared the Man of the Match. He took two wickets in his four overs for just 17 runs. It was a well deserved win for New Zealand.

22:23 IST

New Zealand, riding on solid batting by its top order especially captain Kane Williamson, have won the match by eight wickets. It was quite a comfortable win for them.

22:19 IST

A totally clueless Team India has been beaten by New Zealand in all departments today. It's just a matter of time now.

22:02 IST

NZ need 28 runs in 10 overs to win this game and they have nine wickets in hand. They way their batsmen are playing, India is far away from any miraculous victory in Dubai. Both--fast bowlers and spinners--are ineffective so far.

21:48 IST

New Zealand cruising for a famous and easy victory. With Kane Williamson batting and looking in good touch, NZ doesn't seem in any kind of hurry or problem. They have already scored 60 runs before the eighth over finished. India would be hoping for a miracle now.

21:36 IST

Martin Guptill is OUT after a calculated Jasprit Bumrah delivery. Can India come back in the game now?

21:26 IST

It all depends on first six overs and whether India can take wickets in the first powerplay! Jasprit Bumrah and Varun Chakravarthy are good so far, but it's really difficult to defend such a small total. Martin Guptill and Daryl Mitchell don't look in any sort of trouble as of now.

21:14 IST

One question that every India fan would be asking is whether 110 can be defended on a wicket like Dubai? If first six overs are tightly delivered then there might be a chance for India.

21:03 IST

India's dependency on its top order is totally exposed in this match. Hardik Pandya and Shardul Thakur tried to accelarate but couldn't. It seems the team might not touch the 120-run mark.

20:44 IST

Adam Milne was on target when he pitched a good length ball to Rishabh Pant who missed the trajectory by a long margin. Can India still touch 130?

20:21 IST

New Zealand spinner Ish Sodhi is absolutely on point. Virat Kohli wanted to lift him over long on but he couldn't. Kohli is OUT at 9. Now, Rishabh Pant and Hardik Pandya will have to start building the innings from the scratch.

20:09 IST

A bad shot off Ish Sodhi has cost Rohit Sharma his wicket. New Zealand are now targetting Rishabh Pant. India struggling at 41/3 after 8 overs.

20:02 IST

India struggling against a good planning by New Zealand. Bowlers are targetting weak spots of Indian top order. KL Rahul lost his wicket to Tim Southee. India are now 37/2 after 7 overs.

19:54 IST

It's a SIX. Rohit Sharma has started to pick pace and he has chosen Adam Milne for his purpose. He scored 15 runs in one over. Will he bat deep today? India is now 29/1.

19:46 IST

A lot is happening with India in this match. Ishan Kishan lost his wicket to smart bowling by Trent Boult. He departs at 4.

Rohit Sharma almost lost his wicket, but he was dropped on first ball.

19:29 IST

New zealand have also released the list of final 11 players and it looks like a really strong team.

Match 28. New Zealand XI: M Guptill, D Mitchell, K Williamson, J Neesham, D Conway, G Phillips, M Santner, I Sodhi, T Southee, A Milne, T Boult https://t.co/KzmYmA0dFP #INDvNZ #T20WorldCup

— BCCI (@BCCI) October 31, 2021

19:22 IST

India's playing 11 has been announced and it has two changes. Shardul Thakur and Ishan Kishan have come back in the team.

Team News 

2 changes for #TeamIndia as Ishan Kishan & Shardul Thakur are named in the team. #T20WorldCup #INDvNZ

Follow the match  https://t.co/ZXELFVZhDp

Here's our Playing XI  pic.twitter.com/6xDKILf9lr

— BCCI (@BCCI) October 31, 2021

19:07 IST

Kane Williamson has won the toss and New Zealand have decided to bowl first.

Kane Williamson has won the toss and elected to field  #T20WorldCup | #INDvNZ | https://t.co/n7B0Dl7ph0 pic.twitter.com/7IcaKwlHLp

— ICC (@ICC) October 31, 2021

18:49 IST

Team India fans are praying for their favourites' win. Will Virat Kohli's team give them a gift today?

#TeamIndia fans in Jharkhand's Ranchi cheer for the #ViratKohli led side ahead of #IndiaVsNewZealand match #T20WorldCup #NewZealand pic.twitter.com/xtVKL973Br

— Zee News English (@ZeeNewsEnglish) October 31, 2021

18:44 IST

India will have to be very careful about certain things in Dubai, which is a high scoring ground.

Hear what Mohammad Kaif has to say about this.

18:21 IST

New Zealand have an edge over India in T20I matches. NZ have won 8 out of the 16 clashes between the two team, while India won in 6. Two games remained unfinished. Both teams have the batting firepower, but India can do wonders on its day.

18:12 IST

All the eyes will be on Kohli's captaincy today. He defended Shami after social media trolling in a long post. Now is the turn of his team to get India back in the tournament.

18:00 IST

Virat Kohli and Team India will be looking for a revival of their top game in the match against New Zealand in Dubai today. Pakistan is already on top of charts, but the second place is still open for grab. Will India be able to do it?