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New Zealand take on Scotland in Group 2 of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021 in Dubai on Wednesday.
New Zealand’s World Cup fate will be decided in the next five days as Kane Williamson’s side face three matches in quick succession as Group 2 races to a conclusion.
The Black Caps produced a superb performance to beat India last time out and keep their hopes of qualifying for the semi-finals well and truly alive.
But now the focus switches to the daytime match against Scotland, who go into the clash in Dubai searching for their first win of the Super 12 stage.
“It was a great team effort the other night against a very strong India side,” Tim Southee said. “We’re very pleased with how that went. But now our focus, obviously, shifts to Scotland and three games in five days, which are three day-games as well, which is a challenge in itself.
“So as good a win as it was the other night, we know we have to park it and move on and look forward to a day game tomorrow against Scotland.”
New Zealand know that their future in the tournament is in their own hands, with three victories being enough to guarantee a semi-final spot.
But it is Afghanistan, the last opponent for New Zealand in this three-game run, who currently lie second in Group 2 following their demolitions of both Namibia and Scotland.
And Southee, Williamson and company will be keen to pick up some big wins of their own to reduce the gap in net run rate between themselves on +0.765 and Afghanistan on +3.097 in case it finishes level on points in five days’ time.
Scotland have had a week to recover from the disappointment of their loss to Namibia and now go into a busy run of their own, with India and Pakistan still to come in a week that could test Kyle Coetzer’s side to the very limit.
“The last couple of days we've had some practice where the guys have realigned themselves, gotten themselves prepared for what we're going to face over the next couple of days,” the Scotland skipper said.
“The emotions were all very high getting through to the Super 12s. It was something that we set as a target, and we believed that we could do, getting through to Super 12s. When you get through, then there's even more eyes on you and the pressure sort of just… that bar raises just that little bit further.”
FIXTURE DETAILS
The match: New Zealand v Scotland, Match 32
Time: 14:00 local time, Wednesday 3 November 2021
Venue: Dubai International Stadium
The Teams
Scotland are hopeful that captain Kyle Coetzer will be fit to return at the top of the order for Scotland, who have had an otherwise stable first-choice side throughout the tournament. Craig Wallace is the most likely player to drop out of the XI for Coetzer.
Probable Scotland XI: Kyle Coetzer (captain), George Munsey, Calum MacLeod, Richie Berrington, Matt Cross, Michael Greaves, Chris Greaves, Mark Watt, Josh Davey, Safyaan Sharif, Brad Wheal
New Zealand may opt to experiment with Kyle Jamieson in place of one of their experienced seamers, but with qualification still on the line it’s expected that the Kiwis will go in unchanged.
Probable New Zealand XI: Daryl Mitchell, Martin Guptill, Kane Williamson (captain), Devon Conway, Glenn Phillips, Jimmy Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Adam Milne, Tim Southee, Trent Boult, Ish Sodhi
Key Players
Mark Watt, Scotland: The spinner has been a revelation throughout the tournament, producing an extremely consistent and stingy economy rate, while also picking up wickets at key times. Scotland will need Watt to produce again if they are to cut through New Zealand’s high-quality top-order.
Daryl Mitchell, New Zealand: The shift to opener was an unexpected one for Mitchell, but the pinch-hitting batter has excelled in his new role. Tasked with getting the Kiwis off to a fast start alongside Martin Guptill at the top of the order, Mitchell tees off safe in the knowledge that there is batting strength-in-depth to recover if his risks fail to yield reward. And against India Mitchell showed just how dangerous he can be, smashing all three of his side’s maximums to break the back of the chase.
Ladder Situation
Pakistan have already sealed qualification from Group 2, but the second semi-final spot is still very much up for grabs, with all five other teams in the group still mathematically involved.
New Zealand will be looking for convincing wins over Scotland and Namibia in their next two games, which could set up a qualification decider against Afghanistan in the final group game, depending on results elsewhere.
Scotland’s two defeats and -3.562 NRR means they are almost certainly out already, but they could keep those unlikeliest of qualification hopes alive with victory against the Kiwis.
It never looked in doubt - Pakistan are the first team to confirm a place in the ICC Men's #T20WorldCup semi-finals ����
What They Said
Scotland coach Shane Burger: “When you’re able to play cricket all the time against some of the world’s best players on the biggest stage, you’re only going to keep getting better. We have some world-class players in our team, given more time in the middle under pressure like we’ve just had, I have no doubt that performances will keep being more consistent.”
New Zealand opener Daryl Mitchell: "Obviously, they [Scotland] have had a great qualifying tournament and it's awesome to see them here in the group stages. They're a very dangerous team - they've got a lot of guys who play county cricket, so they understand the nuances of T20 cricket and especially with the Blast over there, so they're obviously going to be a challenge in the next one. The World Cup is a funny old game, especially in conditions that are here with the pitches that bring everyone close. So, we're going to have to be ready to go from ball one."
==
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New Zealand’s World Cup fate will be decided in the next five days as Kane Williamson’s side face three matches in quick succession as Group 2 races to a conclusion.
The Black Caps produced a superb performance to beat India last time out and keep their hopes of qualifying for the semi-finals well and truly alive.
But now the focus switches to the daytime match against Scotland, who go into the clash in Dubai searching for their first win of the Super 12 stage.
“It was a great team effort the other night against a very strong India side,” Tim Southee said. “We’re very pleased with how that went. But now our focus, obviously, shifts to Scotland and three games in five days, which are three day-games as well, which is a challenge in itself.
“So as good a win as it was the other night, we know we have to park it and move on and look forward to a day game tomorrow against Scotland.”
New Zealand know that their future in the tournament is in their own hands, with three victories being enough to guarantee a semi-final spot.
But it is Afghanistan, the last opponent for New Zealand in this three-game run, who currently lie second in Group 2 following their demolitions of both Namibia and Scotland.
And Southee, Williamson and company will be keen to pick up some big wins of their own to reduce the gap in net run rate between themselves on +0.765 and Afghanistan on +3.097 in case it finishes level on points in five days’ time.
Scotland have had a week to recover from the disappointment of their loss to Namibia and now go into a busy run of their own, with India and Pakistan still to come in a week that could test Kyle Coetzer’s side to the very limit.
“The last couple of days we've had some practice where the guys have realigned themselves, gotten themselves prepared for what we're going to face over the next couple of days,” the Scotland skipper said.
“The emotions were all very high getting through to the Super 12s. It was something that we set as a target, and we believed that we could do, getting through to Super 12s. When you get through, then there's even more eyes on you and the pressure sort of just… that bar raises just that little bit further.”
FIXTURE DETAILS
The match: New Zealand v Scotland, Match 32
Time: 14:00 local time, Wednesday 3 November 2021
Venue: Dubai International Stadium
The Teams
Scotland are hopeful that captain Kyle Coetzer will be fit to return at the top of the order for Scotland, who have had an otherwise stable first-choice side throughout the tournament. Craig Wallace is the most likely player to drop out of the XI for Coetzer.
Probable Scotland XI: Kyle Coetzer (captain), George Munsey, Calum MacLeod, Richie Berrington, Matt Cross, Michael Greaves, Chris Greaves, Mark Watt, Josh Davey, Safyaan Sharif, Brad Wheal
New Zealand may opt to experiment with Kyle Jamieson in place of one of their experienced seamers, but with qualification still on the line it’s expected that the Kiwis will go in unchanged.
Probable New Zealand XI: Daryl Mitchell, Martin Guptill, Kane Williamson (captain), Devon Conway, Glenn Phillips, Jimmy Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Adam Milne, Tim Southee, Trent Boult, Ish Sodhi
Key Players
Mark Watt, Scotland: The spinner has been a revelation throughout the tournament, producing an extremely consistent and stingy economy rate, while also picking up wickets at key times. Scotland will need Watt to produce again if they are to cut through New Zealand’s high-quality top-order.
Daryl Mitchell, New Zealand: The shift to opener was an unexpected one for Mitchell, but the pinch-hitting batter has excelled in his new role. Tasked with getting the Kiwis off to a fast start alongside Martin Guptill at the top of the order, Mitchell tees off safe in the knowledge that there is batting strength-in-depth to recover if his risks fail to yield reward. And against India Mitchell showed just how dangerous he can be, smashing all three of his side’s maximums to break the back of the chase.
Ladder Situation
Pakistan have already sealed qualification from Group 2, but the second semi-final spot is still very much up for grabs, with all five other teams in the group still mathematically involved.
New Zealand will be looking for convincing wins over Scotland and Namibia in their next two games, which could set up a qualification decider against Afghanistan in the final group game, depending on results elsewhere.
Scotland’s two defeats and -3.562 NRR means they are almost certainly out already, but they could keep those unlikeliest of qualification hopes alive with victory against the Kiwis.
It never looked in doubt - Pakistan are the first team to confirm a place in the ICC Men's #T20WorldCup semi-finals ����
What They Said
Scotland coach Shane Burger: “When you’re able to play cricket all the time against some of the world’s best players on the biggest stage, you’re only going to keep getting better. We have some world-class players in our team, given more time in the middle under pressure like we’ve just had, I have no doubt that performances will keep being more consistent.”
New Zealand opener Daryl Mitchell: "Obviously, they [Scotland] have had a great qualifying tournament and it's awesome to see them here in the group stages. They're a very dangerous team - they've got a lot of guys who play county cricket, so they understand the nuances of T20 cricket and especially with the Blast over there, so they're obviously going to be a challenge in the next one. The World Cup is a funny old game, especially in conditions that are here with the pitches that bring everyone close. So, we're going to have to be ready to go from ball one."
==
All posters please take note of the following guidelines for match threads on PakPassion:
1. No personal insults at other posters, players, officials, coaching staffs etc.
2. No making fun of player's, official's, coaching staff's names.
3. Do not add any references to media, their social media or post any pictures or screenshots from other sports websites.
4. Stick to commenting on this match. There is no need to bring other countries into the match discussion as there are plenty of other threads where those discussions can be added.
5. Report abuse. If you see any post which is inappropriate, report it. Do not respond to it
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