T20 World Cup: IND vs NZ: 3 reasons India-NZ will be virtual quarterfinal

T20 World Cup: IND vs NZ LIVE: India & New Zealand, the two strong contenders for the semi-final spot from Super 12 Group 2 in the ongoing T20 World Cup will face each other on October 31 in Dubai. The match will act as a virtual quarterfinal of the showpiece event as it may become nearly impossible for the losing side to advance into the next round. Languishing in the second half of Group 2, both India & New Zealand have lost their opening fixture against Pakistan and need to win their second game to not lag behind in the competition. Follow T20 World Cup live updates on InsideSport.in

T20 World Cup: IND vs NZ: 3 reasons why India-NZ match will be a virtual quarterfinal of the World Cup

Also read: Pakistan beat New Zealand Highlights: Brilliant Pakistan wins again, beat Kiwis by 5 wickets, spot in Semifinals almost insight

Both teams have lost their 1st match – Both teams have faced a drubbing in their opening encounter and can’t afford to lose for the second consecutive time. While Virat Kohli-led India suffered a thumping 10 wickets defeat against arch-rivals, New Zealand were on the back foot throughout the game in their 5 wickets defeat to Pakistan. With Pakistan so close to the semis, both India & New Zealand will now have to fight for the second spot in the group.

India remaining fixtures –

Oct 31 vs NZ

03 Nov vs AFG

05 Nov vs Scotland

08 Nov vs Namibia

New Zealand remaining fixtures –

Oct 31 vs IND

Nov 03 vs SCO

Nov 05 vs NAM

Nov 07 vs AFG

Also read: India playing XI vs NZ: Ashwin’s 4-year wait likely to end as off-colour Bhuvneshwar Kumar set to be dropped for New Zealand clash

With two wins, Pakistan is in sight of the semifinals now – The Super 12 round has just started while Pakistan already seems to be ready for the finals. They have played two games against one of the favourites for the tournament & have come out handsomely victorious on each occasion.

The Men in Green have a strong batting lineup with in-form Babar Azam & M Rizwan at the top of the order having experienced campaigners likes Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Hafeez in the middle order. In the bowling attack, Pakistan has Shaheen Shah Afridi who accounted for big scalps of Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, and V Kohli against India & Haris Rauf who returned with four wickets against New Zealand.

Meanwhile, The UAE has been Pakistan’s home ground since 2009 after the infamous incident. This is the same venue Pakistan became number one in ICC Men’s T20Is in 2017-18. And, to add to that fact they have won each of their last 13 T20Is in UAE since 2016.

Pakistan remaining fixtures

29 Oct vs AFG

02 Nov vs NAM

07 Nov vs SCO

Also read: T20 World Cup Points Table: Pakistan consolidates top spot in Group…

Whoever loses is unlikely to go through the semifinals even by winning the next encounters: With the top spot almost sealed by Pakistan, both India and New Zealand will have to fight for the second spot. The opening match defeat has pushed both sides net run rate in negative, meaning just winning the remaining three encounters won’t be enough for the losing side. India has a net run rate of -0.973 while New Zealand is sitting slightly better at -0.532.

With Pakistan already having 4 points and Afghanistan 2 points, it will be nearly impossible for the losing side to advance to the semis with just 6 points if they win all their remaining three fixtures.

Super 12 Group 2	Mat	Won	Lost	Tied	NR	Pts	NRR
Pakistan	2	2	0	0	0	4	+0.738
Afghanistan	1	1	0	0	0	2	+6.500
Namibia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.000
New Zealand	1	0	1	0	0	0	-0.532
India	1	0	1	0	0	0	-0.973
Scotland	1	0	1	0	0	0	-6.500

IND vs NZ in ICC tournaments: In the last six meetings between both teams in ICC tournaments, New Zealand holds the edge with five wins out of six. India’s only victory was way back in the 2003 World Cup under Sourav Ganguly’s leadership.