New Zealand tour of India 2026 | 4th T20I | Preview and Predictions

The series has been sealed, and India will now look to try out their combinations ahead of the imminent T20 World Cup. New Zealand, on the other hand, will look to salvage the series with a win or two.

Here, we present our preview and predictions for the fourth T20I of the 2026 New Zealand tour of India.

New Zealand tour of India 2026 | 4th T20I | 19:00 IST, January 28, 2026

After picking up a thumping win in the third T20I to win the series, Suryakumar Yadav and Gautam Gambhir will look to use the remaining two games to finalise their squad for the T20 World Cup.

Abhishek Sharma at the top of the order has been in red-hot form, and captain Yadav, who came into the series on the back of a lengthy run of poor form, has also found crucial runs. With Tilak Varma injured and officially ruled out of the remainder of the ongoing series, Ishan Kishan has slotted in perfectly at No. 3, providing added firepower at the top of the order.

While the likes of Sharma, Kishan, and Yadav have been firing on all cylinders, Sanju Samson, India’s go-to wicketkeeper, has fallen into a rut and is struggling with the bat. With Kishan regularly performing, it remains to be seen if the management gives Kishan a long rope when Varma returns. 

As far as their bowling department is concerned, India rested their front-line spinner Varun Chakravarthy and pacer Arshdeep Singh for the third T20I, with Jasprit Bumrah stepping up.

Bumrah’s form will be crucial for India heading into the World Cup, and the hosts will hope that he continues from where he left off in Guwahati. Additionally, the Men in Blue have quite a number of bowling options, with Hardik Pandya also getting among the wickets, while Shivam Dube and Abhishek Sharma have been handy with the ball as well.

While India have won the series and will be looking towards the upcoming World Cup, it’s a different picture in the visitors’ camp. New Zealand will be aiming to finish the series on a high and take some momentum into the World Cup, but their batting hasn’t clicked thus far.

The Kiwi top order is struggling to get going. Barring the second game, where Rachin Ravindra and Tim Seifert got some quick runs, their top four haven’t been able to bat long. Glenn Phillips and Mark Chapman have been the only ones among the runs in the middle and lower orders, and the visitors will hope that their experienced batting unit steps up, especially given the fact that all three games have been played on batting-friendly wickets.

While the Indian top order has been tearing the Kiwi bowlers to shreds, Jacob Duffy has been the standout bowler for the visitors and continues to impress with the new ball. NZ captain Mitchell Santner has a host of bowling options and will be looking to get the most out of his bowling unit and get used to the conditions that will also be used at the imminent World Cup.

For this game, the action moves to another batting-friendly wicket at Visakhapatnam, which means there should be plenty of runs once again. The slower bowlers may get some purchase on the strip, with chasing being the go-to option for both teams, especially given how tough it gets to bowl with the dew.

The hosts look in red-hot form and are slowly ticking off all the boxes ahead of the World Cup; India are once again our favourites for the win. 

Fantasy XI: Abhishek Sharma (c), Devon Conway (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Mitchell Santner, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah (vc), Matt Henry

Venue: Dr YS. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium, Visakhapatnam
Winners Prediction: India