T20 World Cup: What do the stats suggest ahead of India's important match against New Zealand?

Team India's second outing in the ongoing T20 World Cup against New Zealand has practically become a do-or-die encounter. Not only do Virat Kohli's men need to best a tough all-rounded team, they will also be battling against history when they go against the Blackcaps.

Both sides lost their opening match to Pakistan and they are now vying for that coveted second spot in Group 2 along with Afghanistan. Only two teams from the group can progress and with Pakistan already taking control of the top spot, the fight is expected to be intense.

New Zealand has proven to be a tough nut to crack for the Men in Blue especially in ICC tournaments. The ghosts of the past have continued to haunt them in modern times as well with the latest World Test Championship Final episode staying true to script.

For a team as consistent and as able to punch above their weight as New Zealand, India will need to play out of their skins in order to have any hopes of progressing through to the next round. On Sunday, Team India will have to mean business.

Let's take a deep-dive into the fixture's T20I and World Cup history with the help of stats:

India vs New Zealand in ICC Events

The last time India won against New Zealand in an ICC event was in the World Cup in 2003. Since then, the two teams have taken on each other four times and India have lost on every single occasion. As far as the T20 World Cup is concerned, the two sides met each other in 2007 and 2016 with India ending up on the losing side twice.

The most recent ICC meetings against New Zealand have also been calamitous for the Men in Blue. In 2019, India appeared to be the favourites to win the World Cup but their march was halted in a heart-breaking manner in the Semi-Final stage by the Kiwis. In the World Test Championship Final earlier this year, the Blackcaps also bested India to become the inaugural champions of the world in red-ball cricket!

India vs New Zealand in T20I matches

New Zealand also hold the advantage over India when it comes to the shortest format of the game. The two sides have played 16 T20Is with the Blackcaps recording eight wins. The men in blue have won six games while two matches have ended in a tie. New Zealand have a success rate of 56.25% against India in T20Is.

Matches Played: 16

New Zealand Wins: 8

India Wins: 6

Matches Tied: 2

India vs New Zealand Individual T20I Batting Statistics

Rohit Sharma leads the way for India when it comes to scoring runs against New Zealand. In 13 matches, he has collected 338 runs. Captain Virat Kohli isn't too far behind and he has amassed 302 runs having played four matches less. KL Rahul is the third-highest scorer for Team India and he has notched up 224 runs in five games. The Hitman also has four half-centuries against New Zealand while Kohli and Rahul have two each.

Colin Munro is the highest-scorer for the Kiwis against India with 426 runs from 12 games which includes four half-tons. Ross Taylor has also amassed 349 runs from 13 matches. Both players haven't been included in New Zealand's T20 World Cup squad, however. Current captain Kane Williamson is third in the list with 325 runs against India from 11 games.

India vs New Zealand Individual T20I Bowling Statistics

With 10 wickets in nine matches, Jasprit Bumrah has picked up the most wickets for the Men in Blue. He's followed by Shardul Thakur with eight wickets from five matches. It remains to be seen whether Thakur finds a place in the starting XI on Sunday. Yuzvendra Chahal, who failed to cement himself a spot in India's T20 World Cup squad, has seven wickets from 10 encounters.

Ish Sodhi has done the maximum damage against his country of origin with 17 scalps from 12 matches. He's followed by Mitchell Santner's 12 wickets in 12 games. Veteran Tim Southee also has 12 wickets to his name from 10 matches. The Indian middle-order needs to be on their toes against the Kiwi spin bowlers.