IND vs NZ, T20Is: Players to watch out for
What's the story
The five-match T20I series between India and New Zealand will kick off on January 21 at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Jamtha, Nagpur. With Suryakumar Yadav captaining a revamped Indian squad, the series is crucial for India's preparation for the ICC Men's T20 World Cup. Meanwhile, the Kiwis have also named a strong squad with Mitchell Santner as the captain. Here we look at the players to watch out for in the series.
#1
Abhishek Sharma - India
Abhishek Sharma was the chief architect of the team's golden run in the T20I format last year. Having hammered 859 runs at a strike rate of 193.46, the dashing opener finished as the second-highest run-scorer in T20Is in 2025 among players from full-member nations. The opener tallied five fifties and a hundred as he averaged an impressive 42.95. The Kiwi bowlers would not want to face his wrath.
#2
Varun Chakravarthy - India
Varun Chakravarthy has aced the spin show for India in T20Is lately. The mystery spinner ended as his team's highest wicket-taker (T20Is) in 2025, having claimed 36 wickets from 20 matches at an average of 13.19. The bowler's economy of 7.08 is also mighty impressive. Chakravarthy will enter the upcoming series as the top-ranked T20I bowler. He would be raring to enhance his numbers even further.
#3
Jacob Duffy - New Zealand
New Zealand pacer Jacob Duffy had an incredible run across formats in 2025. He scalped 35 wickets from 21 T20Is as his average of 15.08 was the best among full-member team pacers with at least 20 wickets last year. His economy in the format was 7.47 as he tallied three four-wicket hauls. Notably, Duffy became the first Kiwi bowler to claim 30-plus T20I wickets in a calendar year.
#4
Daryl Mitchell - New Zealand
Daryl Mitchell was all over the Indian bowlers in the recent ODI series, clocking scores worth 84, 131*, and 137. He would not mind extending his golden run to the T20I format. Mitchell's brilliance against spin bowling makes him a formidable force in the middle overs. However, his T20I numbers in India are far from sensational - 138 runs at an average of 27.60.