New Zealand will beat India 2-1 in T20I series despite Kane Williamson's absence: Peter Fulton

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New Delhi, Nov 17: India, who were knocked out of the T20 World Cup 2021 from the Super 12 stage, will begin their first series under new T20 captain Rohit Sharma and head coach Rahul Dravid with the three-T20I series against New Zealand, starting November 17.

Key players such as Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah are not playing the T20s as part of workload management. The duo of Dravid and Rohit will be testing the bench strength and look to build a team for the future.

Team India will aim to press the reset button for the 2022 edition under a new captain and an illustrious head coach. The duo in the next 11 months will underline the Men In Blue's template and philosophy in the shortest format after it became clear that some rejigging will be needed as a part of course correction.

New Zealand - who are coming on the back of a defeat against Australia in the T20 World Cup final - would be looking to start the new season on a positive note and win the series.

The Blackcaps will be without their inspirational captain Kane Williamson in the T20I series but former NZ cricketer Peter Fulton believes they will still come out victorious.

Fulton - who has represented New Zealand in 23 Tests, 49 ODIs and 12 T20Is - claims the series will be closely fought but the visitors will come out victorious and win the series 2-1.

Speaking with Times of India, Fulton said, "It will be an interesting series. India were knocked out early in the T20 World Cup and would be desperate to put on a good performance in the series. Rohit will be leading the side. He is a talented cricketer. India will be keen to win the series under new captain Rohit Sharma.

"New Zealand players must be tired as the series started just a couple of days after the final vs Australia. I am confident New Zealand will put on a good show despite a tight and heavy schedule. I am predicting a close series between India and NZ. NZ will win 2-1 against India."

Speaking about the key match-ups and battles between the two teams, Fulton said, "Trent Boult vs Rohit Sharma and Tim Southee vs KL Rahul will be the exciting and key clashes to watch (out for) in the series. Boult and Southee were at their best in the T20 World Cup. These two can play a big role for New Zealand in the series. Southee and Boult need to stop Rohit and KL Rahul from scoring big to win the series."