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IRELAND VS NEW ZEALAND MATCH DETAILS:
Match: Ireland vs New Zealand, 2nd T20I, New Zealand tour of Ireland, 2022.
Date and Time: July 20, 2022, Wednesday, 08:30 PM IST.
Venue: Civil Service Cricket Club, Belfast.
Ireland and New Zealand will square off in the second T20I of the three-match series on Wednesday, July 20. The match will be played at the Civil Service Cricket Club in Belfast.
New Zealand registered a 31-run win in the first T20I to take a 1-0 lead in the series. Courtesy of an unbeaten 69 from Glenn Phillips, they posted a challenging total of 173 runs on the board for the loss of eight wickets. Martin Guptill, James Neesham, and Michael Bracewell made some key contributions as well. Joshua Little was the pick of the bowlers for Ireland, recording figures of 4/35 while Mark Adair picked up a couple of wickets as well.
The Irish bowlers started well as they had reduced the visitors to 54/4 in the ninth over. However, the visitors recovered well to eventually post a match-winning total on the board.
In the second innings, the hosts kept losing wickets at regular intervals and were never in the chase all the way through. They were reduced to 98/7 before being bowled out for 142 in 18.2 overs, failing to bat out their complete quota of overs.
Curtis Campher (29) and Mark Adair (25) were the only significant contributors for them with the bat as the rest struggled to get going. The Irish side will require a much better effort from their batters going into the second match of the series.
Lockie Ferguson picked up four wickets for the Kiwis and was the pick of the bowlers. James Neesham and Mitchell Santner chipped in with two scalps each as the visitors continued their dominant run on this tour so far.
They will aim for another win to seal the T20I series as well. The hosts, on the other hand, will need to win this contest to draw the level and take the series to a decider.
IRELAND PREVIEW
Andrew Balbirnie’s side suffered yet another loss as they failed to grab the initiative. Inconsistency in the top order and the lack of killer instincts among the bowlers have hurt the side in this series. As they get into another series-saving contest, Balbirnie would like his players to show fighting spirit in the game and level the series.
Paul Stirling and Balbirnie are key players for the team, and they must put up a big opening wicket stand in this game. Gareth Delany and Harry Tector are good hitters of the ball, and the side would like them to build partnerships in the middle order. Curtis Campher, Lorcan Tucker, George Dockrell, and Mark Adair played good knocks in the last game, and they would look to do well down the order.
Mark Adair was expensive in the last game, and he will need to provide good support to Craig Young with the new ball. Joshua Little has troubled the New Zealanders in this series and the side would want him to excel in this game. Barry McCarthy, Dockrell, and Campher need to do well in the supporting role for the side to win.
NEW ZEALAND PREVIEW
Mitchell Santner’s side started the 3-match series with a win and the New Zealand skipper would be happy with the performance of his bowlers in the last game. However, he would like to see a better show from his batsmen in this game as the top order failed in the last game. Their opponents would be under pressure and Santner shall look to make the best out of it.
The side would expect a good show from Martin Guptill and Finn Allen in this game as both these players are good hitters of the ball. Glenn Phillips played an important knock in the last game, and he would look to add runs with Daryll Mitchell and Dane Cleaver who missed out. The side bats deep and has good hitters of the ball in James Neesham, Michael Bracewell, and Santner are good finishers and they add to the side’s batting strength.
Lockie Ferguson was brilliant with the new ball in the last game, and he would look to trouble Ireland’s top order along with Jacob Duffy. Neesham and Santner bowled well in the middle overs of the last game, and this would to their confidence. Ish Sodhi and Mitchell bowled wayward lines and the Kiwis would expect them to hit the right areas in this contest.
WEATHER CONDITIONS
It would be partly cloudy skies over Belfast on July 20. We expect to see a flat surface as we had seen in the last game, and it is expected to be a high-scoring contest. The ball would move in the initial overs, but batsmen would enjoy batting on this surface. A score of 170 runs would be a good total to defend on this surface.
VENUE DETAILS
Civil Service Cricket Club, Belfast is a small ground and has shorter boundaries. This makes it a good venue for batsmen who like playing their strokes. There is some juice on the surface in the early overs of the game where fast bowlers do well. Spinners don’t get much help from the conditions and have to rely on their variations.
TOSS: TO BAT
It was an excellent surface to bat on in the last game and we saw the wicket get slower in the second innings. In the last five games played here, the sides batting first have won all the games. Hence, the side that wins the toss here would opt to bat first and set up a big score on the board.
IRELAND VS NEW ZEALAND, 2ND T20I PROBABLE PLAYING XI
IRELAND:
Paul Stirling, Andrew Balbirnie (c), Gareth Delany, Harry Tector, Curtis Campher, George Dockrell, Lorcan Tucker (wk), Mark Adair, Barry McCarthy, Craig Young, Joshua Little
NEW ZEALAND:
Martin Guptill, Finn Allen, Dane Cleaver (wk), Glenn Phillips, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner (c), Ish Sodhi, Lockie Ferguson, Jacob Duffy
PROBABLE THE BEST BATTER OF THE MATCH
ANDREW BALBIRNIE:
Skipper Andrew Balbirnie looked in good touch during the first T20I as he scored a couple of boundaries and tried to give a perfect start to his team. However, his innings was cut short by a brilliant piece of fielding from Mitchell Santner, who took a blinder to dismiss him. Balbirnie will look to provide a solid start to his team in the next match.
PROBABLE THE BEST BOWLER OF THE MATCH
MARK ADAIR:
Experienced pacer Mark Adair scalped two wickets during the first encounter but was very costly as he gave away 49 runs in his four-over quota. The pacer was bowling well till his third over, but Phillips smashed 19 runs in his fourth and took his team’s total past the 170-run mark. Adair will want to come back strongly in the next match and give a winning contribution to his team.
TOP PICKS – BATTERS
MARTIN GUPTILL:
The experienced batter has been in good form in this series. After scoring a 100 in the final ODI, Guptill delivered a knock of 24 off 12 in the 1st T20I, laced with five boundaries.
GLENN PHILLIPS:
The swashbuckling player has gradually improved his contributions, as the matches have progressed. In the 1st T20I, Phillips scored 69 off 52 deliveries.
TOP PICKS – ALL-ROUNDERS
CURTIS CAMPHER:
The bright all-rounder has been contributing in a hefty fashion with the willow and is a handy option with the ball as well. In the last game, he scored 29 and took a single wicket.
JAMES NEESHAM:
Neesham had been in good form leading up to this series. In the first game, he contributed 29 off 16 and finished with 2/19 in three overs.
TOP PICKS – BOWLERS
MARK ADAIR:
The experienced player has been consistent in terms of wicket-taking abilities and has been useful with the bat. In the last game, Adair picked two wickets and scored 25 runs.
LOCKIE FERGUSON:
The man-in-form has been firing all cylinders in the shortest format. In the first fixture, he finished with figures of 4/14 to help the team in winning the match.
TOP PICKS- WICKETKEEPER
DANE CLEAVER:
The talented keeper has scored 1463 runs in 71 T20 innings at a strike rate of 134.46 and was impressive in the Super Smash 2021/22.
IRELAND VS NEW ZEALAND MATCH PREDICTION
New Zealand backed up their 3-0 success in the ODI series with another impressive win in the first T20I, thanks to a solid all-around display.
The hosts, meanwhile, will be keen to win the second match and keep the series alive.
Ireland failed to show up with the bat in the first match and will have to do better. They had the Kiwis under pressure with the ball as well but failed to build on the same which eventually cost them the match.
Overall, the visitors are favorites to win this match and seal the T20I series.
Prediction: New Zealand to win this encounter.
