There’s no boundary count rule yet but the series is tied at 1-1 as England and New Zealand fight it out in three more matches this week in a five-game T20I series. Make no mistake, the fervour is no less when these teams clash after the overly exciting World Cup finals provided a stunner for cricket fans. New Zealand are at home and in their zone which gives them an advantage while England are focused on fine tuning an already dangerous T20 line-up. Breathtaking action await us from the southern region.
Watch out for:
Colin de Grandhomme - The big hitting all-rounder was promoted above Ross Taylor in both T20Is, but has teased to fire without going too big. De Grandhomme will want to make use of this big chance.
Australia and Pakistan in T20I mode
Mohammad Irfan is back and Sarfaraz Ahmed is out but Pakistan are Pakistan and in T20Is they have an uncanny way of edging out opponents. Sure it didn't work in the Sri Lankan series but at Sydney in the first T20I, they seemed to show shades of the kind of Pakistan they want to be.
Watch out for:
Babar Azam - The Pakistan opener is the highest run scorer in the format for his country since his debut. A promotion to open the batting has further boosted his credentials. Even with the added responsibility of captaincy, Babar appears to know how to nail this format.
No more smog, but Bangladesh are fuming
We are off from the capital city, but Bangladesh, with the Shakib ban, are left fuming and need to refresh their T20 World Cup plans. They played a slew of slower bowlers in the first T20I against India and bowled as many as eight of them to fill in for the all-rounder they are missing. That could continue this series.
Watch out for:
AFP / Randy BrooksWashington Sundar - Be it with the new ball or with the bat down the order (or in some cases when opening the batting), Sundar is becoming quite a utility player for India. A mainstay in the shortest format of the game now, Sundar will love the surfaces this series is set to be played on.
ODIs sandwiched between T20Is
Two teams that are most likely to be playing T20Is and bossing them, clash in a rather surprisingly scheduled ODI series...in India. No, we aren't talking about India, but Afghanistan playing at their adopted home in India against the Windies. Of course, the T20Is follow the 50-over games but the focus this week will be on the ODIs.
Watch out for:
Brandon King - The Caribbean Premier League hero is in the squad and could be a huge draw for this series. A big hitter with a clean bat swing, King should enjoy the Afghanistan spinners but more importantly he would want to draw in some of those scouts from the Indian T20 League ahead of the auction in December.
Head to Sportsbet.io to make your selections and let the ball rolling.
Feature image courtesy: AFP / Saeed Khan
