India were dominant with the ball and bat in the first match of this ODI series against New Zealand and the thought will be "more of the same, please" when the 2nd ODI comes calling in Delhi. With just seven more matches of ODI cricket to be played before the Champions Trophy 2017, this will be another good opportunity for players to lock their places in the team and for MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli and Anil Kumble to identify just who fits where.
Hardik Pandya was one of those players who grabbed his opportunity in the first match, making a really good impression with the new ball. From a not-that-pacy-at-all bowler, Pandya has added plenty of speed to his bowling and coupled with better accuracy and knowledge of what lines and lengths to bowl, the all-rounder showed just how effective he can be on an, albeit, well-suited for his style of bowling pitch, in Dharamsala.
The difference now for Pandya, and the rest of the India pacers, will be that the Feroz Shah Kotla pitch will not offer quite so much help to the fast bowlers, and how they adjust accordingly will be interesting to see.
From an overall perspective, though, India adjusted much better to the conditions and change in format than New Zealand, who were caught cold by some good bowling.
The Kiwis are a much better team than they have showed in this tour so far, but just telling everyone that will not do; it is time they showed why there are so highly rated by many.
Bouncing back from adversity is the sign if a great team and if New Zealand have designs on being one, they need to recover and give India a real game. The one in Dharamsala was hardly a contest and that just will not do for a side which boasts of the likes of Kane Williamson, Martin Guptill, Tim Southee and Trent Boult, to just name a few.
Grabbing the game by the proverbial scruff of the neck and putting the pressure back on India must be the plan.
They have the personnel to do that, so if they can get Guptill playing one-day cricket like he usually does, Williamson anchoring the innings to perfection, Luke Ronchi, Corey Anderson and Jimmy Neesham whacking a few balls out of the park, Southee and Boult, if he plays, putting the early pressure on the India batsmen, which would then allow Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi to control the innings, this will end up being much more of a contest.
India will just want to do what they have done all tour, and they will know if they continue in the same vein, a 2-0 series lead will be theirs.
2nd ODI schedule: India vs New Zealand.
Date: Thursday, October 20.
Time: 1.30pm IST (9pm NZT, 9am BST, 4am ET).
Venue: Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi.
TV listings:
India: Star Sports 1, Star Sports HD1, Star Sports 3 and Star Sports HD3.
New Zealand: Sky Sport3.
Middle East: OSN Sports Cricket.
UK: Sky Sports 3.
USA and Canada: Willow TV.
