India Vs New Zealand 3rd ODI Tomorrow: Preview

India

India Vs New Zealand 3rd ODI Tomorrow: Preview

India lost the second ODI in Hamilton and also lost its ICC ODI number one rank. presently Australia is in the first position with 118 rating points and India has 117 rating points. Third ODI between India and New Zealand will be played tomorrow and it is important for Team India to win this match to keep the hopes of winning the series alive.

Hamilton: Team India lost the second ODI in Hamilton in New Zealand-India ODI series and the team also lost the world first rank. Openers Sikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma used to record good partnerships in every match and laid a strong foundation for the team to win the matches. Both the batsmen reminded everyone of the Sehwag, Gambhir pair with their right and left handed combination. These two players were the openers in three tourneys that India won and also the Champions Trophy. But now the situation is not that and main problem for India seems to be the openers.

Inability of Team India openers to give a good start to the team is severely affecting the chances of the team to win the matches. in the present series, both these batsmen faced 125 balls in two one days matches and scored only 69 runs. Presently it is important for India to win the next three ODIs to win the series. Third one day match is going to be played tomorrow and it has to be seen whether there will be any changes to the team.

Sikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma till now opened the innings for India in international one day matches in seventeen matches. They made six century partnerships and two half century partnerships. But now apart from not getting runs, Rohit is facing difficulty in facing every ball and Dhawan is losing his wicket playing unnecessary shots.

Captain Dhoni indicated that there may be changes in the team for the third one day match. Thus it is expected that Rahane will be sent to open the innings in place of Rohit and Rohit may be sent to bat in fourth place. Rayudu might also prove to be a good alternative in the middle order. He is reserved to bench since the last two tours. Rayudu is a good stroke maker and there will be nothing wrong in experimenting. Winning the third ODI is crucial for the team to keep the hopes of winning the series alive and it is interesting to know what decisions Dhoni will take.