India and New Zealand are set to lock horns in the second T20I on Saturday in Christchurch, with the Black Caps under the gun to bounce back after crashing to a four-wicket defeat in the opening game. India completely dominated New Zealand in the first game, chasing down a huge target of 225 runs to complete their highest successful run chase in T20Is.

That emphatic victory would have given India plenty of confidence heading into the second game, with openers Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma, who were uncontrollable, looking to unleash their assault once again. Meanwhile, New Zealand are in great danger and will be eager to address their bowling shortcomings which brought them down in the opening encounter. For India, the biggest positive was the collective batting performance, with each batter standing top-to-task and keeping the chase on track.

Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma provided the early impetus, launching an assault to power India to 94 runs in the Powerplay itself, recording their highest score in the first six overs in a T20I outside home conditions. Even their bowlers were equally impressive, making things quite difficult for New Zealand batters. On the other hand, New Zealand fought back hard, with Glenn Phillips being their top scorer, smashing an unbeaten 82 off just 40 deliveries, rescuing the innings after early setbacks and propelling the hosts to a challenging total of 225. But New Zealand's bowling performance was one of the biggest areas of concern. 

Their pace-heavy attack failed to maintain a relentless pressure on Indian batters. The trio of Matt Henry, Adam Milne and Lockie Ferguson conceded a combined 134 runs in just 9.4 overs, exposing a great deal of vulnerability in their bowling attack. Now, heading into the second game, it will be a big task for New Zealand to counter India and get a win under their belt. 

Head-to-head

Matches - 32

IND won - 20

NZ won - 1

No result - 1

New Zealand likely XI: Finn Allen, Tim Seifert (wk), Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Bevon Jacobs, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner (c), Nathan Smith, Adam Milne, Matt Henry, Lockie Ferguson.

India likely XI: Sanju Samson (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Shreyas Iyer (c), Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Naman Dhir, Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, Mayank Yadav.