NZ v SL T20I Series Preview: World champions need a win to retain T20 number 1 ranking

World Champions Sri Lanka need a win in New Zealand to retain T20 number 1 ranking. After being beaten fair and square in the Test and ODI series, the islanders will now focus on the shortest format of the game. NZ move into the T20s with more confidence as they are in right momentum after clinching Test series 2-0 and ODI series 3-1. Black Caps and Sri Lanka will play the first T20 at the Bay Oval on Thursday.

Sri Lanka:

With 125 points, Lankans will need to win at least one match in New Zealand to retain the numero uno spot. Under Dinesh Chandimal, the team will hope to keep their top-ranked status intact, especially with the World T20 starting in March. If Lanka suffered a series whitewash, they will join the West Indies and Australia on 118 points. In such a scenario, the West Indies will top the table ahead of Australia and Sri Lanka when the points are calculated beyond the decimal point.

Lasith Malinga, the regular skipper, is absent because of a recurring knee injury hence, Chandimal will lead the visitors in the 2-match series. Chandimal, who stepped down from T20 captaincy during the ICC World T20 2014, has been a consistent run scorer over last few months. The team may bank on spin, as they often do in this format, meaning Sachithra Senanayake and Jeffrey Vandersay could both play. They also have a liking for all-rounders, so Thisara Perera may play ahead of batsmen such as Kithuruwan Vithanage.

Sri Lanka’s squad is full of hopefuls as well. There’s Danushka Gunathilaka, who will know he can’t live on just one good ODI innings. There’s Chamara Kapugedera, on a quest for redemption. And Isuru Udana, who will want to prove he is more than just a slower-ball machine.

New Zealand:

Kiwis have so far played brilliant cricket in the series and have lost just one game. They will be boosted by the return of all-rounder Corey Anderson who was injured of late. The other good news for New Zealand is the return of Grant Elliott, who was out of action for the past couple of months with a wrist injury. In McCullum’s absence, Kane Williamson will lead the side and it will be interesting to see how one of the most prolific batsmen in cricket at the moment handles the leadership role, which he has donned in the past. With a series win, New Zealand currently ranked eighth with 108 points, will rise to seventh, replacing India, on 114 points, and thus reducing the gap with Sri Lanka to just four points.

Having taken 13 wickets from three ODIs, surely Matt Henry has done enough to earn a place in the T20 XI. With 13 squad members to choose from, New Zealand is likely to omit one quick and one batsman. Mitchell McClenaghan and Grant Elliott may be the men to miss out. Corey Anderson will play but as a specialist batsman only, as he continues to recover from a back injury. Williamson could move up to open in McCullum’s absence. Colin Munro will be out to translate his devastating domestic limited-overs form onto the international stage. The Auckland batsman averaged 40.66 in the Super Smash this summer and his strike-rate was even more impressive at 175.96.

Mount Maunganui will become just the fifth New Zealand city to host a Black Caps T20I. The previous 26 home matches featuring the national side have either been held at Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington or Christchurch. New Zealand has won 15 of those matches – two victories coming in the three tied matches seen in this picturesque country. The strip had just begun to take turn towards the end of the ODI game. Conditions are expected to be cloudy, but dry, with temperatures in the high teens.

Form guide (last five completed matches, most recent first):

New Zealand: WLWLW

Sri Lanka: LWLLW

Stats:

1. Tillakaratne Dilshan is the second on the T20I run scorers list with 1590 runs but is still 550 behind the leader, Brendon McCullum.

2. Corey Anderson has not played a T20 since December 2014 but has been in good list A form, hitting 88 and 98 for Northern Districts in the past eight days.

New Zealand (probable): 1 Kane Williamson (capt), 2 Martin Guptill, 3 Ross Taylor, 4 Corey Anderson, 5 Colin Munro, 6 Mitchell Santner, 7 Luke Ronchi (wk), 8 Adam Milne, 9 Trent Boult, 10 Matt Henry, 11 Ish Sodhi.

Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 2 Danushka Gunathilaka , 3 Dinesh Chandimal (capt & wk), 4 Angelo Mathews, 5 Milinda Siriwardana, 6 Chamara Kapugedera, 7 Thisara Perera, 8 Nuwan Kulasekara, 9 Sachithra Senanayake, 10 Dushmantha Chameera, 11 Jeffrey Vandersay.