New Zealand are paying little attention to their World Cup rivals' form in the group stage of the tournament as every team that reaches the knockout rounds have potential match winners in the side, spinner Daniel Vettori said on Sunday.
India suffered a crushing 103-run defeat to New Zealand, after being shot out for 198 while chasing a mammoth 301 runs, in a warm-up game ahead of the Champions Trophy in Potchefstroom on Sunday.
It remains to be seen whether India stick to their combination of three specialist pacers and two spinners combination or bring in an extra spinner in Kuldeep Yadav to partner Yuzvendra Chahal and Ravindra Jadeja.
In a tight season for India, the first T20 comes only five days after their last ODI against Australia at home.
Brimming with confidence after a clean-sweep in the Test series, India will look to carry on their dominance over New Zealand when the two teams lock horns in the first cricket One-day International of the five-match series, in Dharamsala on Sunday.
New Zealand cruised to a comprehensive eight-wicket win over England.
England go into the 10-team tournament as the top side in the team rankings with 125 points and India in second position four points behind.
Pakistan will be desperately looking to ensure the painful defeat to India becomes a distant past when they run into an in-form New Zealand in Mohali on Tuesday with an aim to bounce back into the World Twenty20 and pacify their bitter fans back home. Pakistan are coming into the Group 2 Super 10 game having suffered their 11th defeat to the arch-rivals in ICC's world events. The 2009 champions entered the tournament after an early elimination in the Asia Cup. On the other hand, the New Zealanders are on a roll with two massive wins over hosts India and Australia, making them one of the strong contenders to lift the coveted trophy on April 3. Another win and they will be in the knockout stages of the mega-event. New Zealand have emerged as the team to beat after the stunned tournament favourites India first up, before getting the better of traditional rivals Australia in a trans-Tasman battle.
The Indian batting line-up's soft underbelly lay exposed in slightly favourable bowling conditions as New Zealand gave the two-time champions a rude wake-up call, easing to a six-wicket victory in the World Cup warm-up match at the Oval, in London, on Saturday.
Shikhar Dhawan and stand-in skipper Rohit Sharma made a steady start and added 21 runs before Boult hit his rhythm.
India's bowlers laid the foundation before Shikhar Dhawan anchored a straightforward chase to secure the tourists a comprehensive eight-wicket victory over New Zealand in the first one day international in Napier on Wednesday.
New Zealand's 2-0 series defeat on home pitches by Australia was a disappointing end to the Brendon McCullum era and showed the Black Caps have work to do if they hope to consistently challenge the top test nations.
Sunrisers Hyderabad face a formidable task without batting mainstay David Warner when they square off against Mumbai Indians in a crucial IPL match in Mumbai, on Thursday.
Tom Latham's century and 91 from Kane Williamson put New Zealand firmly in the driving seat with a 151-run lead over Zimbabwe on the second day of the first Test on Friday.
Trent Boult grabbed two wickets on successive balls to help New Zealand to a 12-run win over England in their Twenty20 tri-series match at Wellington Regional Stadium on Tuesday.
Latham, who struck a brisk 108 off 97 balls in New Zealand's 33-run win over Board President's XI in the second practice game in Mumbai on Thursday, said the visitors are relying on video footage to study the Indian spinners.
When the West Indies were overwhelmed by New Zealand's determination...
Earlier, Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma struck scintillating half-centuries during a record 158-run partnership and powered India to a formidable 202 for three.
Mark Gillespie mowed down the top order while Jeetan Patel polished the tail as New Zealand A thumped their Australian counterparts by 129 runs in the first match of the A Team Triangular Series, in Hyderabad on Monday.
Tillakaratne Dilshan scored his 47th one-day half century to anchor a much-improved Sri Lanka to a morale-boosting eight-wicket victory on Thursday that kept their one-day series against New Zealand alive.
Ravindra Jadeja very nearly pulled off a sensational victory with some lusty hits but could not take India home in the last over as the third one-dayer against New Zealand ended in a nail-biting tie to keep the visitors afloat in the five-match series in Auckland on Saturday.
Captain Kane Williamson and Neil Broom both flirted with centuries as New Zealand cruised to an eight-wicket victory over Bangladesh in their third one-day international to complete a 3-0 series sweep at Saxton Oval in Nelson on Saturday.
The International Cricket Council chief executive Dave Richardson admitted that the balance between bat and ball is shifting too much towards batsmen and the rules might have to be changed to give the bowlers more of a chance.
New Zealand will play three ODIs, starting with the opening match in Mumbai on October 22. It will be followed by three Twenty20s.
Rain forced the abandonment of Monday's cricket World Cup warm-up match between New Zealand and Zimbabwe.
Recalled batsman Neil Broom scored his maiden one-day century and took two crucial catches as New Zealand completed a 67-run victory over Bangladesh in the second one-day international at Saxton Oval in Nelson on Thursday.
India won the twin T20 Internationals in Auckland by margins of six and seven wickets respectively to go 2-0 up in the five-match series.
Openers Aaron Redmond (105) and Martin Guptil (80) combined for a 190-run stand to guide New Zealand A to a commanding 270 for 3 against India A on the opening day of the second and final four-day cricket match in Chennai on Friday. The visitors, who elected to bat, crossed the 250-mark for the first time since the first match, which they lost by 129 runs.
New Zealand are looming as the popular dark horses for the cricket World Cup.
Neesham, a batting all-rounder, rocked the Afghanistan innings by his incisive bowling and in the process returned with his career-best figures of 5/31 from his 10 overs. His earlier best was 4/42.
Ravichandran Ashwin held on to his top spot, while Ravindra Jadeja rose a rung to be fifth in the all-rounders' chart of the latest ICC Test rankings issued on Tuesday.
Even as they struggle to find the winning formula, laggards Kings XI Punjab will still fancy their chances when they host Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League cricket tournament in Mohali on Monday.
Talented youngster Shai Hope smashed his way to a blistering 101 while Andre Russell scored a quickfire 54 down the order to set up a 91-run win for World Cup dark horses West Indies in their warm-up game against New Zealand.
While both Taylor and Latham were unable to see their side through to victory, Mitchell Santner, who scored just two from his first nine deliveries then scored another 43 from the next 18, won the game with his fourth six and finished on 45 not out.
Australia wicketkeeper-batsman Brad Haddin has been slammed on social media for sledging a couple of New Zealand batsmen while sending them back to the pavilion following their dismissal during their World Cup win over Brendon McCullum's men on Sunday.
The focus will be on K L Rahul and Vijay Shankar, contenders for the number four slot, in the World Cup warm up match against New Zealand, in London, on Saturday.
Photos from Day 2 of the 3rd Test played at the Adelaide Oval on Saturday
New Zealand spinner Mitchell Santner said losing three wickets put his team under pressure and they ended up posting a below par total against India in the second One-Day International in Pune on Wednesday.
Tight bowling and fifties from Shikhar Dhawan and Dinesh Karthik helped India secure a series-levelling six-wickets victory against New Zealand in the second One-Day International in Pune on Wednesday.
Stand-in captain Rohit Sharma Tdescribed India's batting performance as 'one of the worst in a long time' after the visitors were shot out for their seventh lowest ODI total in a shocking eight-wicket loss to New Zealand.
