New Zealand, led by captain Kane Williamson, who has returned to the team, will look to continue its winning streak against Bangladesh in the third round of matches at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium on Friday.
Williamson’s inclusion will strengthen the team’s batting line-up, as he is one of the best players of spin bowling in the squad. He is expected to replace Mark Chapman in the playing XI.
The match on Friday is expected to be a close contest, possibly depending on how well the Kiwi batsmen handle the spin challenge posed by the Bangladesh spinners on a pitch likely to favour them.
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Devon Conway and Mitchell Santner, who play for the IPL team Chennai Super Kings, will use their knowledge of the conditions to give their side an edge. Conway’s unbeaten 152 against England set the tone for the tournament, while Santner has been its best bowler, leading the bowling charts with seven wickets. In the previous match against the Netherlands, Santner took a five-wicket haul.
It will be interesting to see if Williamson will bat in his usual position of number three, considering Rachin Ravindra’s impressive performance; he has scored 174 runs in two matches at No. 3.
Besides, New Zealand needs to decide whether to include an extra frontline spinner in Ish Sodhi or stick to its three-pronged pace attack, with Glenn Phillips and Ravindra supporting Santner in the spin department.
Bangladesh suffered a 137-run loss to England in its last match and will aim to move on quickly. It is expected to perform well on the spin-friendly tracks at the Chepauk stadium, similar to the ones they are used to playing back home.
While four of their batters have scored half-centuries, one of the top-order batters needs to play long innings. Bangladesh’s strength lies in its spin troika of skipper Shakib Al Hasan, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, and Mahedi Hasan.
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