🏏 New Zealand vs India 5th T20I in Thiruvananthapuram 7 PM IST🏏

This is it. One last match before these teams go into the T20 World Cup. And the series is not even on the line. India, who are much closer to knowing their best XI, experimented much more in the last dead rubber when they played Harshit Rana at No. 7 and continued to rest Varun Chakravarthy.

New Zealand, still figuring out an ideal structure, working around injuries and availability of players, have no reason to experiment. The latest addition to their squad is Finn Allen, fresh off topping the charts at the BBL with 466 runs at 184.18. It is important they get him used to the conditions in India, where he has played only three T20Is and three ODIs three years ago.

While New Zealand work their way through these constraints, India will be desperate to see some runs against Sanju Samson's name. No better place to do it than a full house at his home ground in Trivandrum. India pivoted from Shubman Gill to Samson at the 11th hour because Gill was not getting runs; they won't like his replacement to take the same boat into the tournament.

When: India vs New Zealand, 5th T20I on Saturday (January 31) at 7:00 PM local

Where: Greenfield International Stadium, Thiruvananthapuram

What to expect: A full house and some dew for the chasing team.

After the last match, Mitchell Santner had said how he's expecting "another flat one and a small ground" for the final T20I, and that's exactly what might be on offer. The centre pitch has been readied for this match, and it's been one of those venues where the pitches have played better than they have looked. Last time India played here, they racked up 235.

Team News:

India: Batting coach Sitanshu Kotak said Ishan Kishan, who missed the last match with a niggle, will "most likely play" this one. Axar Patel, another one who's missed the last three T20Is after hurting his bowling hand, will be in contention. Both Kishan and Patel were among the first ones to hit the nets during India's optional practice session on match eve. Hardik Pandya could be rested after four straight matches.

Probable XI: Sanju Samson (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh

New Zealand: Allen, who joined the squad after his BBL commitments, is likely to replace Devon Conway at the top of the order. There's still little clarity over Michael Bracewell, who's been out since sustaining a minor left-calf strain while fielding in the third and final ODI in Indore.

Probable XI: Tim Seifert (wk), Finn Allen, Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, Mitchell Santner (c), Zakary Foulkes, Matt Henry, Ish Sodhi, Jacob Duffy

In the spotlight: Devon Conway and Ishan Kishan

Both Devon Conway and Ishan Kishan have the same two questions around them: do they play, and where do they bat if they do? Conway has opened for New Zealand in all four matches, but now that Allen is here, is there room for him and if yes, in which capacity? Kishan missed the last match with a niggle, but if he is good to go, do India even try to open with him and give Abhishek Sharma a rest?

Conway is in a position where he needs to provide the team management reasons to keep him in the XI. Kishan seems to be in such good hitting form that the Indian team management might be tempted to see what he does as an opener.

Pitch and conditions

Temperatures will remain in the 20s throughout the day in Trivandrum, whose last two T20 matches have both been internationals, back in 2023 and 2022. On both occasions, India won: piling up and defending a big total against Australia in 2023 and bowling South Africa out for 106 in 2022.

Stats and trivia

• Ish Sodhi is two wickets behind New Zealand's most successful T20I bowler: Tim Southee, who took 164.
• Tim Seifert needs 52 runs to become the fourth New Zealander to 2000 T20I runs.
• Suryakumar Yadav needs 33 runs to become only the 12th player in the world with 3000 T20I runs.

Did you know?

- Sanju Samson is set to feature at his home ground for the first time in his India career.

- Finn Allen was the leading run-getter during recently-concluded BBL 15.

- Since the start of 2025, India's average opening stands read 30.91. It's the sixth best among the 12 Full Member nations.

What they said:

"Abhishek is someone who plays a lot of shots, but his shots don't seem like somebody's slogging. It seems like he is playing more on merit of the ball" - Sitanshu Kotak,India batting coach

"T20 cricket is about confidence, how do you keep coming back and challenging batters when you're under pressure, how do you find a way to make it work. I think that's where you put your energy because you can't control the outcome but if you keep turning up, you keep learning. And I think that's probably a highlight of this series for us" - Matt Henry, New Zealand pacer

Team news

It seems India didn't want to risk Axar Patel before the tournament, which might explain his absence for the last two matches, but we don't know if they feel confident enough to bring him back for this match. We don't know the nature of the niggle to Kishan but India's batting coach Sitanshu Kotak said that he would "very likely" play, though the physios will take the final call.

Nothing has really changed. India remain favourites for the T20 World Cup despite the 50-run shellacking in Vizag, where they tried a six-batter, five-bowler combination and came up short.

For the fifth T20I in Thiruvananthapuram, their final international outing before the World Cup, the hosts are expected to field a largely first-choice XI, despite the unavailability of Washington Sundar and Tilak Varma. Winning, they say, is a habit, and few have embodied that better than India this World Cup cycle. With a win percentage of 80, they sit 10 points clear of the next-best Australia.

Vizag did offer a silver lining. Kuldeep Yadav and Sanju Samson appeared to be rediscovering their rhythm, while Abhishek Sharma, despite a golden duck, stuck to his template, swinging hard first ball even without the batting depth he's accustomed to lower down the order. That is the kind of intent Suryakumar Yadav wants from his side, though it didn't mean the dismissal went undiscussed.

"It is his plan, what he wants to do once he goes in," batting coach Sitanshu Kotak said before the fifth T20I. "But we definitely discuss what pace the bowler has, what areas they are trying to bowl at him, and at that pace, what would be the better option if he doesn't go fine towards point... He does think, he does speak to Gautam, he does speak to me and even Surya."

Matt Henry, who dismissed Abhishek first ball in that match, felt the learning curve for his team might have been steep in this series but it will hold them in good stead during the World Cup.

"It's never nice being put under that kind of pressure," said Henry, "but we knew that the long-term picture was getting prepared for a World Cup and how do you put teams under pressure when they're flying like that.

"So, it was all positive gains from our point of view and we're just really pleased that the guys could still stay confident going into that last game. I think that is a true testament of character of the group," Henry said.

The last match in Vizag did like a turning point, with the visitors showing an understanding of how rapidly T20 cricket is evolving, both with the bat and ball. They will be bolstered further by the return of Finn Allen, and his pairing with an in-form Tim Seifert will be one to watch as New Zealand will once again look to counter India's methods with firepower of their own.

All in all, momentum will be up for grabs in this final T20I of a long series as both teams look to iron out wrinkles before the big one, the World Cup.