A series of contrasting events for both teams
Asia has been a home away from home for the Kiwis since the T20 World Cup ended in June. Their stay in the continent can be divided into two contrasting parts. The first part being where victory or any hint of joy for that matter, remained elusive as they scratched their heads in the face of both controllable and uncontrollable challenges. The second part, however, made up for the shoddy reception earlier by letting the Black Caps experience a victory so rare that no one before them had savored it. They now gear up to face Sri Lanka once again, but this time in the shortest format, with many of their core players out of the team, prepping for the Test series against England later this month.
Sri Lanka, in contrast, kept largely indoors, aside from a Test series in England. Their home dominance has also stuck with them regardless of formats and opposition. The chain of victory began with an ODI series win against India, followed by a demanding Test whitewash to New Zealand, and finally a multi-format thrashing of West Indies.
Team Overview:
New Zealand might not have ‘the spinner’ to take help from the Sri Lankan surfaces, but they definitely have spinners and plenty of them. This was what they employed against India as well. Instead of relying on one hotshot, they used their depth to get the job done. There are several new faces, and many of them will make their debut in the series as well. Most important of all are Nathan Smith and Mitch Hay. Smith, a right-arm pacer, who was the Domestic Player of the Year for the country will be a handy weapon, especially with rain forecasted in Sri Lanka during the entire week. While Hay is the latest introduction to the Kiwis’ growing club of wicketkeeping batters.
Sri Lanka went overboard with their talent of tackling spin with the bat and delivering spin with the ball. They would rather keep the same strategy going. However, against New Zealand, who gave Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin a hard time, they might need to mastermind a backup plan. With the amount of brilliant pacers in the team, coming up with that should not be a problem for them. The Islander batters are in a red-hot form from top to bottom, which definitely tolls bells of warning for the Kiwis.
Head-to-Head Matches:
New Zealand and Sri Lanka have faced each other in 23 T20Is to date, out of which the Kiwis won 13 games while the Islanders came out ahead in 7 games. Two games ended without a result, while one game ended with the scores leveled.
Weather and Pitch Report:
Dambulla will be facing heavy rainfall throughout the week, though the match day is forecasted to be saved from the torment luckily. Like most of the Sri Lankan grounds, Dambulla has a spin-friendly track but with rain that too can change. Pacers can come into the equation, especially with the new ball. The surface will get trickier for batting as the game progresses.
Prediction:
New Zealand are on a roll, especially after the whitewash against India. While it is not a child’s play to beat Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka, the visitors are more likely to get over the line.
Where to Watch:
Sri Lanka: Supreme TV, Ten Cricket, Sony Sports
New Zealand: Sky Sports
Pakistan: Tapmad
India: Sony Sports Network, FanCode App
United Kingdom: TNT Sports
Asia: Sony Liv
