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India's Sanju Samson bowled out by New Zealand's Matt Henry during the third T20 cricket match between India and New Zealand in Guwahati, India, Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Anupam Nath)
India vs New Zealand 4th T20I Playing 11: Following three one-sided losses, India will take on New Zealand in the fourth T20I, having already won the five-match series. The match will be played at the ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam on Wednesday.
For India, the main question revolves around Sanju Samson’s place at the top. Samson has struggled in each of the three innings in this series, scoring 10, 6 and 0. He has looked out of touch, with his weakness against inswingers once again exposed.
Now that they’ve sealed the series, India can afford a few changes. All-rounder Axar Patel, who injured his hand while fielding in the first T20I in Nagpur, was back in action on the eve of the match. He had a full net session, testing both his batting and bowling. Axar could return to the XI in place of Hardik Pandya, who might be rested after featuring in all three matches so far.
Varun Chakaravarthy and Arshdeep Singh could also be rotated back into the side after missing the Guwahati game. India might even consider resting Jasprit Bumrah, with Harshit Rana waiting in the wings.
India Predicted XI
- Sanju Samson (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya/Axar Patel, Rinku Singh, Arshdeep Singh, Ravi Bishnoi/Vaun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah/Harshit Rana.
Meanwhile, New Zealand have plenty of problems to solve with the T20 World Cup approaching. Their batting looks shaky, their bowling looks even weaker, and they need to regroup before things slip away completely. So far, they have offered little competition to India and have been outplayed in every game.
They must fix their batting order quickly, and that means getting their in-form batter, Daryl Mitchell, higher up. Anything below No. 4 is too late for a player like him. Rachin Ravindra, though a top-order batter, could make way for Mitchell at No. 3. One of Ravindra or Mark Chapman could then slot in at No. 5, followed by Glenn Phillips at No. 6. Mitchell could also open alongside Tim Seifert, replacing the out-of-form Devon Conway.
New Zealand have released Kristian Clarke and Tim Robinson from the squad for the last two games. Attacking opener Finn Allen, who has been drafted in, is yet to arrive from his Big Bash League stint. Lockie Ferguson could make way for Jacob Duffy or Kyle Jamieson as the Kiwis look to shake things up.
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New Zealand Predicted XI
- Daryl Mitchell/Devon Conway, Tim Seifert (w), Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner (c), Kyle Jamieson/Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Ish Sodhi, Jacob Duffy.
IND vs NZ T20I Squads
India: Suryakumar Yadav (capt), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Shreyas Iyer (first three T20Is), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel (vice-capt), Rinku Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ishan Kishan (wk), Ravi Bishnoi.
New Zealand: Mitchell Santner (c), Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Zak Foulkes, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Bevon Jacobs, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Tim Robinson, Ish Sodhi, Kristian Clarke.
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