Indian innings
India 139 (Dhoni 39, Dhawan 29, Shankar 27, Southee 3/17)
NZ 219/6 (Seifert 84, Munro 34, Williamson 34, H Pandya 2/51)
NZ win by 80 runs
Wicketkeeper Tim Seifert is named Man of the Match for his batting display and catching behind the stumps.
Don't forget to join us on Friday, when these two teams do battle again at Auckland's Eden Park.
20th over - Mitchell will bowl the final over. He has no wickets, but he's been a revelation in terms of not allowing the batsmen to score.
OUT! I spoke too soon.
Mitchell completely eludes Chahal and takes out the wickets to end the innings and complete a record Indian T20 loss.
Great performance from New Zealand, especially given their woeful results in the one-day series.
19th over - Southee tempts Dohni into a leg-side swat and he barely carries Sodhi behind square leg.
Dhoni plays straight down the pitch for four, but it's way too late for any heroics.
OUT! Dhoni tries to hook Southee, but Ferguson is lurking on the boundary for his third catch of the innings.
Dhoni c Ferguson, b Southee 39
18th over - Ferguson to complete his spell, Kumar is the new batsman.
Dhoni's 34 runs are off 24 balls.
OUT! Kumar edges and Seifert takes a superb diving catch to his right.
Kumar c Seifert, b Ferguson 1
Chahal is the new batsman, so the end is nigh.
17th over - Southee returns.
Dhoni swings Southee towards the boundary and the ball wrong-foots Ferguson in the outfield. Santner makes a valiant attempt to keep it off the rope, but he signals for a review and that shows he was unsuccessful.
Good sportsmanship there from Santner. The Aussies wouldn't have done that.
Dhoni square cuts delicately for four.
OUT! Pandya wafts at Southee and succeeds only in top-edging the ball to Seifert, who dives forward for the catch.
K Pandya c Seifert, b Southee 20
16th over - Ferguson comes back into the attack.
Dhoni French-cuts to the boundary for four - lucky not to hit his stumps. India need 22.7 runs an over from here, almost a boundary a ball.
Ferguson beats Pandya and there's a sound, but he's hit the ground with his bat. He beats Pandya again.
Five off the over.
15th over - Sodhi continues and Pandya hits straight back into umpire Chris Brown.
Pandya sweeps down leg-side and the ball spins past Taylor for a boundary - India's 100 is up.
Sodhi is called for consecutive wides - the second is not a good call from Brown - Pandya finishes the over with a six.
14th over - Santner into his last over, India need 18.9 runs an over from here.
Dhoni restores some personal respect with a six, but still only nine runs off the over.
13th over - Sodhi continues and eludes Pandya outside off-stump.
The required run rate is now so high, India will have to be spectacular to get close. They need 135 runs off 44 balls.
Five runs off that over.
12th over - Dhoni hits Santner straight for four.
Krunal Pandya has replaced his brother and is lucky not to drag a wide ball back onto his stumps.
Six runs off the over.
11th over - Sodhi with spin. Karthik tries to reverse the first ball and misses.
OUT! Karthik tries a more orthodox sweep, but has to reach for it and hits it flat to Southee, who takes a superb diving catch in the outfield.
Karthik c Southee b Sodhi 5
Hardik Pandya hits with the spin for four to open his scoring.
OUT! Pandya has to reach on the off-side and hits it down the throat of Mitchell on the boundary.
H Pandya c Mitchell b Sodhi 4
10th over - Mitchell to continue. He is a master of the slow ball, but how long before they scope him out.
They don't manage it this time - just seven off the over and that won't get the job done at this stage.
Ninth over - Santner with is second over.
OUT! Santner eludes Pant's reverse sweep, then lands a very full yorker that cleans out the stumps - great ball!
Pant b Santner 4
Now MS Dhoni strides to the crease, receiving a loud ovation.
OUT! Shankar skies one and de Grandhomme's big hands are safe.
Shankar c de Grandhomme b Santner 27
One run, two wickets off that over and the Indian innings has lost its poise.
Eighth over - Mitchell will bowl his first over for his country. Pant moves to reverse-sweep, but Mitchell slows up the delivery to beat him.
Wow, Mitchell just takes the air out of the ball and Pant can't get a line on him at all.
Three runs off the over. Required run rate is now 13.0.
Seventh over - Santner will bring his spin and almost has Shankar caught first ball.
Shankar makes no mistake with the second, smashing it into the stand.
New Zealand appeal for a stumping, but Shankar has made his ground.
Eight runs off the over - India are well off the pace, but have such explosive ability, you can't count them out.
Sixth over - Ferguson with his second over. India need 173 runs off 89 balls.
Dhawan strokes Ferguson for four.
OUT! Ferguson hits 150kph with a yorker and Dhawan has no answer - it goes straight through him and takes out his stumps.
Dhawan b Ferguson 29
Pant comes to the crease - this should be interesting. Seven runs off the over, good comeback from Ferguson.
Fifth over - Kuggeleijn changes ends. Shankar drives him high and straight for four.
The Indians might be targeting Kuggeleijn here, as Shakar pulls him for a couple more and then another boundary.
Shankar goes one better with a six - there's no place to hide Kuggeleijn right now.
Eighteen runs off the over.
Fourth over - Ferguson replaces Kuggeleijn - no surprise there.
He takes Dhawan on the foot with his third ball, but it seems to be headed down legside. Big shout, but not out and no review.
Dhawan treats the next ball with disdain, swatting it for six. Nine runs from the over.
The last ball was clocked at 152kph.
Third over - Southee continues.
OUT! Sharma swings leg-side, but doesn't really connect. Ferguson dives forward to take a good catch, after missing one in the previous over.
Rohit Sharma c Ferguson, b Southee 1
Southee is showing plenty of guile out there and has the batsmen in two minds. Just one run from the over.
Second over - Scott Kuggeleijn has the second over and beats Sharma with his first ball.
Dhawan flicks one towards the boundary and it barely clears Ferguson on the rope - six!
Next ball is hit slightly squarer, but same result - six!
Fifth ball is swung behind square leg for four.
Seventeen runs off the over - a good one for India.
First over - Tim Southee will open the bowling and he's on target from the start, against Sharma and Dhawan.
With the last ball, he goes through Dhawan and there's a noise - that's ball against pad, so not out and no review.
*****
NZ innings
NZ 219/6 (Tim Seifert 84, Colin Munro 34, Kane Williamson 34, Hardik Pandya 2/51)
20th over - Ahmed, who took the catch in that last over, will close the innings for India.
The NZ batsmen can't quite connect on the first three balls - just singles - but Kuggeleijn clubs a boundary on the fourth.
Santner swings to the leg-side, Dhawan slips in the outfield and concedes a boundary on the last ball. Great innings from New Zealand - that will be a challenging run chase for India.
19th over - Kumar to finish his spell.
OUT! Taylor skies it and Ahmed is under it safely, although he does bobble it.
Ross Taylor c Ahmed, b Kumar 23
Kuggeleijn edges one past the keeper for four to open his account. Then, the new batsman moves wide outside the off-stump - the ball is actually off the pitch - to guide it through third man for four.
That's shaken Kumar, whose next ball is wide down leg. Six off the last ball.
Sixteen runs off the over - one more to come.
18th over - Hardik Pandya is immediately back and is met by Taylor for six.
DROPPED. Taylor takes a full toss and hits towards the boundary, but Karthik drops the catch - again.
Remember, he grassed one earlier in the innings, before nabbing Mitchell with his footwork.
OUT! De Grandhomme hits high, high, high... and substitute fielder Siraj gets under it to take the catch.
Collin de Grandhomme c Siraj, b H Pandya 3
17th over - De Grandhomme has arrived at just the right stage of the innings to play a cameo here. Kumar comes back into the attack.
Taylor plays uppishly, but into the gap for a couple. He then slogs flat on the off-side for six.
Eleven runs from the over.
16th over - Chahal to complete his spell.
OUT! Boom-boom... next ball, Williamson lofts to the fieldsman and is caught.
Kane Williamson c H Pandya b Chahal 34
Taylor and de Grandhomme must rebuild the inning somewhat, after that double strike from India.
Just five guns off the over.
15th over - Hardik Pandya returns and opens with a wide.
Williamson anticipates a short ball and gets under it, guiding it into the stands. He repeats the shot - there was a TAB book on consecutive sixes and I think he just won that bet.
OUT! Mitchell hits back over the bowler towards the boundary and Karthik manages to flick the ball back infield before he steps out, then returns to make the catch.
Daryl Mitchell c Karthik, b H Pandya 8
14th over - Chahal into his third over, and concedes just eight runs.
Williamson swings towards the boundary on the finall ball, but it's cut off.
13th over - Ahmed back, after conceding 25 runs off his previous two overs.
Williamson wants some of the action and swings a six over the boundary.
OUT! Ahmed delivers a yorker to Seifert, who is already swinging and can't keep it out.
Great innings that has thrust him back into World Cup contention.
Tim Seifert b Ahmed 84
Mitchell virtually sprints out to the middle to take guard. He gets off the mark with a four straight back past the bowler.
Eleven runs off the over.
12th over - Chahal continues and Williamson is just feeding strike to Seifert.
Seifert cuts viciously for a four and finishes the over with six into the stand. Thirteen runs off the over.
11th over - Karthik Pandya will bowl out his spell, but Seifert swings into the stand.
Next ball, he plays inside out and barely clears the boundary fielder for another six.
Seifert skies one high into the air, but is dropped. The ball probably swirled around a bit, but that should have been taken.
Seventeen runs off that over.
10th over - Chahal to deliver his spin bowling.
Seifert does a dance and reverse-sweeps for four - he's seeing the ball like a balloon right now.
Nine runs off the over and New Zealand are halfway through their innings.
Ninth over - Seifert takes a single off the first ball from Karthik Pandya and brings up his maiden T20 fifty off 30 balls.
OUT! Munro hits high towards the boundary and is caught on the ropes. A good support innings for him.
Colin Munro c Shankar b K Pandya 34
Williamson comes out to the middle. He plays one uppishly straight back up the pitch and Seifert seems to obstruct Pandya as he attempts the catch.
The Indians are not impressed, but they sense Seifert did nothing wrong - he simply stood his ground.
Eighth over - Hardik Pandya again, Seifert big swing and a miss... then edges past the keeper for four.
SIX. Seifert is making every post a winner so far.
Eleven runs off the over.
Seventh over - Karthik Pandya to coninue his spin.
Seifert reverse-sweeps him to the boundary - that's classic Brendon McCullum there.
Eight runs off the over, Seifert had to survive a half-hearted leg-before-wicket appeal on the final ball.
Sixth over - Hardik Pandya will bowl from the other end to his brother, but his first ball is a bouncer, ruled wide.
Seifert swings leg-side and just clears the fielder for a boundary. Then, he cuts to the opposite side for another four.
Twelve off the over - NZ averaging 11.0 after the powerplay.
Fifth over - Karthik Pandya will bowl spin now. Seifert tries to cut and offer Dhoni a top edge that goes down.
Next ball, Seifert gets under the ball and hoists it into the stand for six.
Ten runs off the over.
Fourth over - Ahmed for his second over, Munro clubs him for six.
Next ball, Munro cuts hard and flat for another six, but he has to dig out a yorker on the third ball.
Seifert chips over the infield for a couple. Sixteen runs off that over.
Third over - Kumar continues, Munro glances down leg-side for two off the first ball.
Munro lofts towards the boundary again, but Sharma hauls it in for three. Seifert really connects on the next ball and that's six.
He's hit straight back down the ground for four - this is becoming a big over. Fifteen runs off it.
Second over - Ahmed to take the second over for India.
Munro lofts towards the boundary and Sharma can't haul it in before the ropes. Next ball is more convincing for Munro - one bounce and into the fence.
Nine from the over.
First over - Good crowd in the Cake Tin for this match. We had a few showers during the women's game, but they seem to have cleared.
Kumar will open the bowling, with Seifert facing the first ball. He plays the third ball through the infield to open his account.
Munro plays his first ball off the body for a single too.
Seifert's form in domestic cricket hasn't been flash, but this is a chance for him to stake a claim as the back-up keeper at the World Cup.
Four runs off the over.
*****
We've had the toss and India have called correctly, sending New Zealand into bat first.
Blackcaps skipper Kane Williamson admits he would have bowled first too, so perhaps early honours to India.
Some interesting selections in the NZ line-up, with Daryl Mitchell - son of former All Blacks coach John Mitchell - making his international debut.
Wicketkeeper Tim Seifert will open the innings with Colin Munro. Doug Bracewell, Blaie Tickner and Jimmy Neesham will sit this one out.
New Zealand: Seifert, Munro, Williamson, Mitchell, Taylor, de Grandhomme, Santner, Kuggelijn, Southee, Sodhi, Ferguson
India: Sharma, Dhawan, Pant, Shankar, Karthik, Dhoni, H Pandya, K Pandya, Kumar, Chahal, Ahmed
New Zealand are paying $2.29 for the win at the TAB, India just $1.63.
*****
Welcome back to the news that the White Ferns have completed a comprehensive victory over India in their opening T20 - the curtainraiser (if we can use that term) to the men's match.
New Zealand scored 159 runs in their 20 overs and although India looked likely early, they collapsed in the later overs to fall 23 runs short.
One unfortunate feature of the women's encounter was the injury to Frankie Mackay, who was involved in a spectacular collision while she was batting, but later twisted her ankle while bowling and ended up on crutches.
Terribly bad luck for a player returning to the team, after five years out of the squad.
*****
Kia ora, good evening and welcome to Newshub's coverage of the Blackcaps vs India T20 clash at Wellington's Westpac Stadium this Waitangi Day.
For the New Zealand men, the three-match series in the short format offers a chance for payback, after a fairly disappointing one-day result over the past couple of weeks.
The 4-1 drubbing in that series really set the Blackcaps World Cup campaign back on its heels, providing more questions than answers, as selectors ponder the final composition of that squad.
- New Zealand switch to T20 mode
- Anderson's World Cup hopes dim
- NZ's Martin Guptill ruled out of T20 series
To some extent, this 20-over contest provides another opportunity for boderline players to push their case for selection, while more established candidates can play into some form, after setbacks over the longer form.
One question mark currently hangs over the opening combination in the batting order, where Martin Guptill and Colin Munro have both struggled, and Henry Nicholls has been tried unconvincingly.
Guptill is injured and Nicholls has been rested for this series, so captain Kane Williamson may open with Munro. If that experiment works, would the selectors consider that option for the World Cup?
Top seam bowler Trent Boult has also been rested, so Tim Southee has a chance to prove his readiness, after struggling in the one-day game.
Tim Seifert replaces Tom Latham behind the stumps, while all-rounders Jimmy Neesham, Colin de Grandhomme, Mitchell Santner and Doug Bracewell continue their scramble for World Cup preference.
Join us closer to 7:30pm for the toss and team line-ups.
Newshub.
