India vs New Zealand 1st T20I in Auckland weather update: Bright and sunny with minimal chance of rain

After a solid finish to their home season with a 2-1 ODI series win against Australia, India ready themselves for their tour of New Zealand, their first overseas assignment since the tour of the Caribbean in August last year. India will kickstart their tour with a five-match T20I series against the hosts, following by three ODIs and finally, a two-match Test series. Shikhar Dhawan has been ruled out of the T20I and ODI series due to a shoulder injury that he picked up during the recently-concluded ODI series against Australia. [caption id=“attachment_7947061” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] From left, India cricketers Shardul Thakur, Rohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja during a training session ahead of the first India vs New Zealand T20I in Auckland. Image credits @BCCI[/caption] Sanju Samson has been included in the T20I squad for the New Zealand tour. Prithvi Shaw has also received a call-up to the ODI squad. With skipper Virat Kohli indicating that KL Rahul could continue to keep the wickets, Samson, Rishabh Pant and Manish Pandey will have to battle it out for the middle-order spot. Rahul, in all probability, will open with Rohit Sharma. India will field a largely similar squad as the one that played the ODI series against Australia. For New Zealand, they would be looking to bounce back hard after being hammered 0-3 by Australia in Test series away. In their last T20I series they lost to England in the Super Over in the final T20I with the series poised at 2-2. The loss to Australia still rankles and Kane Williamson’s captaincy has come under the scanner. He would be looking for a turnaround as soon as possible. However, the home side will have their task cut out against a strong Indian side, as they will be missing the services of Trent Boult, Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson owing to injuries. The first T20I is scheduled for 24 January, at Eden Park in Auckland. On the weather front, the forecast, according to Accuweather, is promising for tomorrow’s match, with a bright and sunny sky in the offing. There will be some cloud cover but no chance of rain.