Overview
- The decider is on Sunday, January 18 at Holkar Stadium, with the toss at 1:00 pm IST and start at 1:30 pm IST, live on Star Sports and JioHotstar.
- New Zealand leveled the series 1–1 in Rajkot, powered by Daryl Mitchell’s unbeaten 131 and Will Young’s 87 after India won the opener in Vadodara.
- India have not lost a bilateral ODI series at home since March 2019 and are 7–0 in ODIs at Holkar, while New Zealand have never won an ODI series in India.
- Holkar is widely viewed as batting-friendly with short boundaries, shaping expectations of high scores and putting a premium on decision-making at the toss.
- Selection talk centers on India’s bowling balance, with speculation about Arshdeep Singh’s inclusion and a Nitish Kumar Reddy vs Ayush Badoni call, as Shubman Gill and Michael Bracewell lead the sides.