India and New Zealand will lock horns one final time in the ongoing five-match T20I series, with the fifth T20I scheduled for Saturday, January 31, at the Greenfield International Stadium, Thiruvananthapuram. India have already clinched the series with a 3-1 lead, but the hosts will be keen to secure a 4-1 series victory in the finale.
India dominated large parts of the series, registering convincing wins in Nagpur, Raipur, and Guwahati. However, they suffered a 50-run defeat in the fourth T20I in Visakhapatnam, where inconsistency and lack of cohesion proved costly. Under the leadership of Suryakumar Yadav, the team will aim to bounce back strongly and finish the series on a high note as preparations continue for the 2026 T20 World Cup.
New Zealand, on the other hand, gained confidence from their commanding win in Visakhapatnam, which marked their first victory of the series. The Kiwis will look to build on that momentum and end the tour positively, making the final match a potentially exciting contest.
Sanju Samson will look to make the most of the home conditions and vocal crowd support as India completes its T20 World Cup preparation phase in the final T20I against New Zealand.
Axar Patel’s fitness remains India’s main concern ahead of the series finale.
In the fourth T20I, India experimented with five specialist bowlers, choosing not to use all-rounders Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube, a strategy that did not pay off.
Although the series result is not at stake, the team management could make further changes to the bowling unit.
Varun Chakravarthy may return to the playing XI after being rested for the previous two matches.
New Zealand will be encouraged by their improved performance in the previous match, where Tim Seifert provided a strong start at the top of the order. Winning the toss and controlling the game early will again be a priority for the visitors.
With Matt Henry showing good rhythm since returning to bowling duties, the final T20I offers him another opportunity to gain valuable match practice ahead of the upcoming 2026 T20 World Cup campaign.
Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (w), Suryakumar Yadav (c), Rinku Singh, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Harshit Rana, Ravi Bishnoi, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah
Tim Seifert (w), Devon Conway, Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, Mitchell Santner (c), Zakary Foulkes, Matt Henry, Ish Sodhi, Jacob Duffy
Matches Played: 29
India Wins: 15
New Zealand Wins: 11
Tied / No Result: 3
Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakravarthy, Rinku Singh, Arshdeep Singh, Ravi Bishnoi, Harshit Rana
Mitchell Santner (captain), Devon Conway, Bevon Jacobs, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Tim Robinson, Jimmy Neesham, Ish Sodhi, Zak Foulkes, Mark Chapman, Michael Bracewell, Rachin Ravindra, Kyle Jamieson, Matt Henry, Jacob Duffy
The fifth T20I will be played on Saturday, January 31.
The match will take place at the Greenfield International Stadium, Thiruvananthapuram.
The toss will take place at 6:30 PM IST.
The match will begin at 7:00 PM IST.
The match will be live telecast on the Star Sports Network in India.
Live streaming will be available on the JioHotstar app and website.