Swing and seam friendly conditions, a lack of truly scary Australian bowlers and New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum's retirement are all themes that will resonate when the first Test gets underway in Wellington on Friday.
After a comfortable outing in the tournament-opener against Bangladesh, title favourites England are set to face a much stiffer test against New Zealand in a crucial ICC Champions Trophy Group A fixture in Cardiff, on Tuesday.
Amit Mishra produced a magical spell to send New Zealand crashing for a lowly 79 as India won by a massive margin of 190 runs to clinch the five-match series 3-2, in the fifth and final One-Day International in Visakhapatnam, on Saturday.
Rediscovering himself in the twilight of his career, a rejuvenated Mahendra Singh Dhoni would look to continue his regained form and guide India to a series-clinching win when the hosts take on New Zealand in the fourth One-Day International, in Ranchi, on Wednesday.
Stung by an improved New Zealand the other night, a wary India would like to quickly get their house in order when they square off with Kane Williamson's boys in the third ODI in Mohali on Sunday. While the six-run defeat in Delhi has given India plenty to ponder about, it has also renewed interest in the contest which had been dominated by the home team prior to Thursday, stretching from the one-sided Test series to the first ODI in Dharamsala. From the New Zealand point of view, a victory was all that they needed after a string of deflating defeats. As a result of their first win on Indian soil in 13 years, one can expect a certain spring in the stride of the visitors when they take the field at the PCA Stadium in Mohali.
Images from Day 1 of the third and final Test between India and New Zealand in Indore on Saturday.
At the face of it, there is apparently no danger to Dhoni's captaincy since the team is still winning matches. But if one digs deeper, Kohli has slowly and surely been the man everyone is looking forward to as the leader, across all formats for India.
A stat pack of India and New Zealand's ODI careers...
The game features two of the world's leading batsmen captaining their sides in Virat Kohli and Kane Williamson, as well as a pair of strike bowlers at the top of their game in Jasprit Bumrah and Trent Boult.
Indian skipper Virat Kohli hammered a listless New Zealand attack with a superlative double hundred as the hosts piled up a mammoth 557 for five on the second day of the third Test in Indore, on Sunday.
India's marauding cricket team will be aiming to reclaim the No 1 spot in ICC rankings when it takes on an unsettled New Zealand in the second Test starting, in Kolkata, on Friday.
The second Test between Australia and New Zealand ended in a draw on Tuesday, with the tourists 217 runs short of their victory target of 321 on a rain-disrupted fifth and final day at the WACA.
Heavy overnight rain ended New Zealand's hopes of winning the third Test against South Africa and levelling the series at 1-1 on Wednesday when the final day in Hamilton was abandoned without a ball being bowled.
New Zealand, put into bat on a green wicket by Pakistan's stand-in skipper Azhar Ali, were 77 for two when the umpires ended the day's play just before 4:30 p.m. local time after light rain had forced the players off before lunch.
Captain Brendon McCullum is unlikely to pull on the wicketkeeping gloves again for New Zealand, coach Mike Hesson said on Saturday. The 32-year-old is battling a long-term back injury and has already given up the gruelling role in test matches, with BJ Watling taking the gloves in the longest form of the game.
India continued to enjoy the upperhand in the second and final Test against New Zealand despite a fighting unbeaten century from home team captain Brendon McCullum, who led a spirited fightback on an absorbing third day in Wellington on Sunday.
Summarising everything cricket from around the world...
Kane Williamson inched towards his ninth Test century as he and BJ Watling staved off Sri Lanka's push for victory at the close of play on the third day of the second Test at the Basin Reserve on Monday.
Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor calmly guided New Zealand to an eight-wicket victory over Sri Lanka in the first Test at Hagley Oval in Christchurch on Monday.
Kane Williamson hit a brilliant 123 as New Zealand staved off Pakistan's spirited challenge to eke out a series-levelling seven-run victory in the fourth one-day international in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.
Rajneesh Gupta profiles the cricketers playing the World Cup 2019.
Guptill will undergo a fitness Test on Sunday after which a final decision will be taken on whether he can partner Henry Nicholls at the top of New Zealand's order.
While multiple-time world champions and Champions Trophy winners Australia are always a tough nut to crack, New Zealand will enter the game at Edgbaston with renewed confidence after their six-wicket warm-up win over Sri Lanka at the same venue.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni's leadership as well as finishing skills will be put through a stern test when an inconsistent India take on a rejuvenated New Zealand in the series-deciding fifth and final cricket ODI in Visakhapatnam on Saturday. With the series locked at 2-2, Dhoni and his men will be eager to clinch the issue while history beckons Kane Williamson's men as they have a glorious opportunity to taste their maiden success in a bilateral ODI rubber. The only thing that can play spoilsport is the cyclone threat which can lead to complete washout.
Statistical highlights on day 3 of the first Test between India and New Zealand in Kanpur on Saturday.
With unbeaten New Zealand having already qualified for the World Cup quarter-finals, attention is focussing on the side's four players who have not appeared so far at the tournament.
Check out the head to head record between the World Cup finalists.
Usman Khawaja's magnificent 174 helped Australia to a dominant 556 for four declared and an imposing lead of 399 at the end of the second day of the first Test against New Zealand on Friday.
Supremely positive, aggressive and efficient, the Black Caps amply justified their status as the world's third-ranked Test side in a 1-1 draw with their hosts which fluctuated from the first ball to the last. New Zealand are a team to be reckoned with.
Why New Zealand pulled out of tour match in Sydney on Day 2
Sarfraz Ahmed struck a defiant century before Pakistan's spinners wrecked New Zealand's top and middle order to leave the second Test in Dubai nicely poised on Thursday. New Zealand had reduced Pakistan to 287 for eight and appeared on course for a healthy first innings lead, but Sarfraz (112) added 81 runs for the last wicket with Rahat Ali to dash their hopes.
Brendon McCullum blasted the fastest Test century to rescue New Zealand before Australia were reduced to 57 for one by the close of day one of the second Test on Saturday.
New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson says his team is aware of the tough challenge of playing in India and his team is up for it.
Pace bowler Jackson Bird has been recalled by Australia for the first Test against New Zealand after James Pattinson was deemed not quite ready to stand up to the rigours of a full workload, captain Steve Smith said on Thursday.
'A lot of our recent success has been based on the value of our number six batsman bowling some overs and we're comfortable continuing in that vein'
A blazing half-century from opener Martin Guptill helped New Zealand beat South Africa by 32 runs in Centurion on Sunday to draw the two-match Twenty20 international series 1-1.
Craig Ervine struck a powerful maiden century to lead Zimbabwe to a seven-wicket victory over New Zealand in the first one-day international at the Harare Sports Club on Sunday.
Rookie all-rounder Mitchell Santner and veteran Grant Elliott have been rewarded for their recent strong performances by being included in New Zealand's list of centrally contracted players on Wednesday.
Steve Smith and Adam Voges scored the fifth and sixth centuries of the second Test to give Australia a lead of 193 after Ross Taylor's epic 290 brought New Zealand back into the contest on day four on Monday.
Veteran seamer Jhulan Goswami was named in the Indian women's team for the T20 tri-series involving Australia and England with Harmanpreet Kaur back as the leader.
