India v New Zealand, 5-match ODI series: Where to watch live, time, date, venues, squads and preview

Kiwis eye revenge in five-match ODI series against India

October 14, 2016 17:01 SGT

By Akshay Ramesh

Dhoni would want to prove his critics wrong with a good show against New Zealand Reuters

Live Coverage: In Singapore the live coverage of the five-match ODI series between India and New Zealand will be on Star Cricket.

Live Steraming: Hotstar

Overview

India host New Zealand in a five-match One Day International series, starting 16 October in Dharamsala.

After an intriguing but one-sided three-match Test series in which Virat Kohli's Team India completed a successful 3-0 whitewash, the action shifts to a shorter format of the game, in which New Zealand are expected to come up with a stiffer fight than they did in whites.

MS Dhoni will take charge of the Indian ODI unit, who are placed fourth in the International Cricket Council's rankings while Kane Williamson's New Zealand are placed a spot above at third.

The Black Caps have toured India for playing bilateral series on four occasions - 1988, 1995, 1998 and 2010 - and have returned empty handed all the time. The head-to-head record between the two countries (matches played in India) reads 15-3 in favour of the hosts, which includes a 5-0 whitewash during New Zealand's most recent visit.

However, both the teams have gone through a lot of changes in the recent past and have younger players who have risen up the ranks since then. New Zealand displayed flair and intent when they reached the final of the 2015 World Cup and set up Trans-Tasman final with Australia, who eventually went on to clinch the title.

After former skipper Brendon McCullum retirement from international cricket in February 2016, New Zealand have not played ODI cricket and the upcoming series in India will be the first full-time test for captain Williamson in the 50-over format.

However, Williamson has proved his mettle as an able leader in the shortest format of the game. His team went on to beat India in the 2016 World Twenty20 opener, in which spinners Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi ran through the Indian line-up.

On the other hand, Indian skipper Dhoni has not had results going his way in the 50-over format. The wicketkeeper-batsman has led his team to only two series wins out of six and both of them came against minnows Zimbabwe.

The focus will be on the 2011 World Cup-winner when he leads the side against a dangerous New Zealand unit as he will begin preparations for the 2017 Champions Trophy in England. There are still doubts over Dhoni's future as captain of the limited-overs sides and he will be under tremendous pressure to produce positive results.

India have gone in with a relatively inexperienced bowling line-up as senior players Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Shami have been rested. However, they have a solid batting line-up to bank on, which includes ODI specialists Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina along with youngsters Mandeep Sharma and Manish Pandey.

Spin will once again be a crucial factor in the upcoming series and New Zealand will be hoping to make use of the absence of Ashwin and Jadeja. Amidst a festival season in the South Asian country, the rivalry between the Blacks Caps and the Men in Blue is likely to please the fans with close contests.

ODI series schedule

Match: India v New Zealand, 1st ODI

Date: 16 October, Sunday