India vs NewZealand 5th T20i: They’ll be all set for the T20 World Cup

They’ll be all set for the T20 World Cup, having secured the series in the first four games, when India face New Zealand on Saturday in Thiruvananthapuram. Well-known as a last rehearsal for the tournament, this fifth and final T20I is essentially a statement match for both sides. Coming dashing into the final countdown to the World Cup, every single one of India’s players with aspirations of being part of the World Cup is going to be itching to show their worth to the home crowd.

New Zealand have been given a much-needed boost with Finn Allen‘s return from his BBL heroics and the addition of Lockie Ferguson to the fast-bowling department.

The disparity in this series

India having won three of the first four games and basically claimed the trophy, but that fourth loss in Visakhapatnam exposed a few chinks in the armour, and proved that India’s firepower isn’t a problem, it’s more about balance and cohesive team performance, as they’ve found out that when their openers Abhishek Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav fall cheaply, the rest of the team can’t always pull the ship out of the hole. The Black Caps pounced on sloppy starts and seized the initiative when the Indian bowlers went chasing after pace instead of length.

Greenfield International Stadium pitch

The Greenfield International Stadium pitch is known for favouring bowlers in the early stages of the match and providing a boost to chasers in the later stages, will test both of these teams. India will be itching to tinker with their combinations, particularly at the top and with their death-overs plan. The pressure is mounting for Sanju Samson who’s only managed 40 runs across this series in his home state of Kerala. When looking back on 2024, Samson’s T20I form was spotless, he’d hit three centuries against Bangladesh and South Africa, making him the top centurion in a single T20I year, and now he’s been struggling, because they asked him to bat in different spots, basically taking away his rhythm and his confidence.

Well-known Indian cricketer Shubman Gill’s surprise omission from the World Cup team might clear up some of the issues in Samson’s mind.

He won’t be constantly worried about what others are saying. Coming back to his home ground in Thiruvananthapuram is always going to give him a huge boost, and he’s been playing in this stadium his whole life. He could well use a performance to shut up all the people who have been doubting him, and absolutely guarantee himself a World Cup spot. Former cricketer Suresh Raina has stuck by Samson, saying that his batting ability and class are still very much in place, and that he’s not out of the picture.

Samson is a batsman who can hit the ball out of the park, the issue is will the crushing weight of expectation weigh him down, or set him free.

New Zealand powerplay and openers

New Zealand are known for their powerplay strategy, and the arrival of Finn Allen has completely turned things around, he went absolutely ballistic for the Perth Scorchers in the BBL this year, and ended up leading the run charts. Coming up against India, he’s never done much, averaging just 10.4 in five matches, but his recent club cricket suggests he’s grown into the role. Tim Seifert and Devon Conway proved in Visakhapatnam that aggressive cricket can be very effective against India, and showed everyone what they were capable of, breaking the ice in the fourth match, Seifert went off like a rocket, hitting 62 off 36 balls and Conway chipped in with 44. It was New Zealand’s first 100-run opening partnership against India in over three years, going back to Buttler and Hales’ 170-run stand in the 2022 T20 World Cup semi-final.

Well-known questions arise for New Zealand, will their openers be able to keep the runs flowing, they’ve already proven they can, the thing is can they do it consistently. In three of the first four matches, New Zealand collapsed after a good start. When it comes to the third T20I against India, New Zealand can take confidence from Mitchell Santner‘s spin which was utterly impressive in the second innings, and got great support from Ish Sodhi, and will need their batting to turn that fourth match momentum into a complete 20-over effort.

Well-known for its initial favoritism

And particularly fast bowlers, Greenfield International Stadium’s surface has a lot of bounce and swing when the humidity is high. Coming in hard and lively, the surface gives out consistent pace and spinners tend to take hold as the pitch deteriorates, getting a grip on the ball and twisting it all over the place. It’s the dew factor, however, that really makes the evening T20Is here tick.

New Zealand will be aware of the value of winning the toss and deciding to bowl first, and they’ll know that when the dew sets in in the second half of the chase, the target of 160 becomes much more manageable. New Zealand too are aware that whoever bats first needs to be ruthless early and really aggressive towards the end. Something that India failed to do in Visakhapatnam despite Dube’s heroics.

The powerplay phase will determine the early momentum, the middle overs will test the bowling’s discipline and the last five overs will separate the teams’ intentions from their execution.

India’s got a good set

India’s got a good set of spinners.

Against New Zealand’s lineup that has lots of left-handers, Conway, Allen, Santner, these spinners have some serious options.

Kuldeep’s dismissal of Conway in the last game showed just how effective flighted bowling can be against aggressive left-handers and Varun is basically unknown on the world stage but he’s got complete control over the powerplay. Bishnoi may be untested, but gives India the chance to throw in an off-spinner who adds to the mix. Looking at the New Zealand side, they’ve gone all out with their spin arsenal, and the Blackcaps are counting on Santner, Sodhi and their all-rounders, Phillips, Ravindra and Bracewell to throw some interesting variations at the batsmen. This clash of spin-heavy approaches is going to produce a mind-boggling middle-overs period that TV audiences will love.

Hardik Pandya in terrific form

Coming fresh from the comments of Ravi Shastri, India’s former head coach, who described Hardik Pandya as being in “terrific form”, we’ve seen this bouncy all-rounder do exactly what he does best in the first four matches of this series, and that’s show the world his low-order explosive batting and his ability to bowl death overs under pressure.

New Zealand don’t have a batsman like Pandya in their death phase, someone who can absorb the pressure of the middle order without taking up too much time, or bailing out their bowlers when they go for a few runs in the slog overs. James Neesham does provide some depth but his performance in bilateral cricket is less spectacular than what India’s fast bowlers can deliver.

Well-known as a batting powerhouse, India’s ability to navigate New Zealand’s spin without losing more than 3-4 wickets by the 15th over will be the acid test for their chances in this series, and by extension, the World Cup. If they can pull that off, they’re likely to post a score that has proven to be competitive at this venue.

Abhishek Sharma who is sitting atop the T20I batting rankings has been struggling in the powerplay segment of this series, was given a nasty reminder of the cutthroat nature of T20 cricket in the fourth match when he was bowled out on the first ball. With such high expectations, he is still the force that India need, and his explosive attitude is exactly what the team wants. But regularity in pressure matches will determine whether he becomes a tournament winner or a talented player who hits the headlines for his cameos. They’ll be looking to test Jacob Duffy‘s, the world’s second-ranked T20I bowler, and see how well Matt Henry‘s back to his old self, when New Zealand take on India for the fifth and final T20I in Thiruvananthapuram.

Last chance before World Cup

Well-known for his 3-1 series win over India, this fourth match laid bare the cracks in India’s opening partnerships and middle-order commitment, and Saturday is their last chance to sort these out before the World Cup kicks off in a week.

Sanju Samson’s home ground reprieve couldn’t be better timed, considering he’s only managed 40 runs so far in the series.

One match to silence his World Cup doubters, and we all know he has the class to do it.

New Zealand’s recent upgrade of their batting firepower has turned up the ante in this series, Finn Allen‘s BBL heroics.

The ability of each team to keep their nerve and discipline in the middle overs and death phase will be crucial in this series, and so is the match-up between Varun Chakaravarthy and Glenn Phillips/Rachin Ravindra, one of the sub-plots to watch out for.

India’s 32-5 win-loss record since their 2024 title and ranking No. 1 Position has them as clear favourites but one more rock-solid performance, especially from Samson, Abhishek, and the spinners will be a definite confidence booster for them heading into the tournament.

The fifth T20I won’t be just for the sake of it, both teams are essentially using this game as a referendum on how ready they are for the World Cup. And showing that they’re not invincible, when India take the field against New Zealand they’ll be riding high on the wave of their series success. Coming into this match, the Blackcaps have pushed back in the fourth encounter and are now fully geared up to put up a fight, and won’t go quietly into the World Cup.

Well-known issues that the Indians exposed in Visakhapatnam.

Feeble starts, middle-order soft spots, and occasional bowling errors, are now being scrutinised, and the teams themselves as well as the fans want to see if these problems have been completely fixed or glossed over.

Samson’s massive innings will be the talk of the town, but there are lots of smaller things that will be just as crucial: how Abhishek reacts to the initial swing, whether Suryakumar rediscovers the form that propelled him to T20I stardom, and if Hardik’s all-round brilliance will cut through the opposition. New Zealand’s explosive batting tells us that they’re far from satisfied with the series loss, and if their openers click and Santner stifles runs, a major upset isn’t beyond the realm of possibility.

Both teams go into the World Cup in just five days with either the wind in their sails or problems to worry about, and Saturday’s result will give them a much-needed confidence boost.

Or will be a disaster they won’t have time to dwell on. Coming heading into the World Cup, this final match will be an unadulterated look at which of these two major World Cup contenders has cracked the code of T20 cricket in 2026.