[WATCH] Hardik Pandya and Co. welcomed in Ahmedabad in ethnic style ahead of IND vs NZ 3rd T20I
Hardik Pandya-led Team India arrived at the team hotel in Ahmedabad ahead of the third T20I against New Zealand on Monday, January 30. The iconic Narendra Modi Stadium will host the final game of the series on Wednesday, February 1.
The Indian cricket team shared the video on Instagram as the Men in Blue were welcomed in a traditional style. They captioned the post:
“Hello, Ahmedabad. We are here for the third and final T20I of the INDvsNZ series #TeamIndia.”
After securing a six-wicket win against the Blackcaps in the second T20I, Hardik Pandya and Co. will now look to keep the momentum going and keep their win record intact at home. The visitors won the first T20I by 21 runs in Ranchi on Friday, January 27.
The Hardik Pandya-led side will also be looking to give a fitting tribute to the Shafali Verma-led U19 Women’s side that won the ICC Women's U19 T20 World Cup ahead of their felicitation ceremony at the venue.
It is with great delight I share that Bharat Ratna Shri @sachin_rt and @BCCI Office Bearers will felicitate the victorious India U19 team on Feb 1st in Narendra Modi Stadium at 6:30 PM IST. The young cricketers have made India proud and we will honour their achievements.
Unlike Lucknow, Ahmedabad's pitch is likely to witness a high-scoring game. Speaking to ESPNCricinfo, Wasim Jaffer said:
"I feel Ahmedabad will have better batting conditions. It will be a good game. I’ll be surprised if there is so much spin. Probably a score around 160-170 is what I am expecting and the pitch to play a lot better than in the first two games."
Incidentally, the Lucknow wicket drew a lot of flak from fans and former cricketers alike. They slammed the curator for preparing a rank turner, which saw both sides struggle to score even 100 runs.
“Give him a chance” – Danish Kaneria wants Hardik Pandya and Co. to include Prithvi Shaw in playing XI
Danish Kaneria wants Hardik Pandya and Co. to pick Prithvi Shaw ahead of Shubman Gill in the third T20I against New Zealand.
Pointed out Gill’s repeated failures against spin in the ongoing series, the former leg-spinner said that the Mumbai-born batter can do wonders if given a long rope.
“It’s the last game," he said in a video uploaded on his YouTube channel. "You’ve seen how Shubman Gill plays, Prithvi Shaw is an exciting young cricketer. He is known for his attacking game. You can give him a chance in Gill’s place. Shaw has the flair. If he plays consistently, he can do wonders.”
“No doubt Shubman Gill is a fantastic batter, but he needs to look at the flaws in his batting. I think he needs to work on his spin and bounce," Kaneria continued.
The statement comes after Shubman Gill registered four below-par scores in the last five T20I innings - 11, 7, 46, 5, and 7.
It's worth mentioning that Shaw recently scored 379 runs for Mumbai against Assam in the ongoing Ranji Trophy.
Kaneria further added that the lack of a specialist wicketkeeper would ensure Kishan gets another chance despite failing to score half-centuries in the last 13 T20Is. He said:
“If you remove Ishan, then who’ll do the keeping? You need a wicketkeeper-batter.”
So far, Kishan has registered figures of four and 19 in the ongoing three-match T20I series.
Hardik will look to guide Team India to a third T20I series on a trot after a 1-0 victory in New Zealand followed by a 2-1 win against Sri Lanka at home.