India vs New Zealand Betting Tips 31/10/2021

13:35, 31 Oct 2021

Senior Author

13:35, 31 Oct 2021

Zohaib Ahmed is a sports journalist whose profession is to report and edit but whose passion is to predict and bet. He’s been in the industry for more than a decade and has worked/written for various bookmakers/tipsters. His expertise is in cricket, football, MMA, boxing and basketball.

The 28th fixture of the T20 World Cup 2021 sees India take on New Zealand on October 31 (Sunday) at Dubai International Cricket Stadium. The match is scheduled to begin at 7:30 pm IST.

Teams Status

India

Pakistan’s hot start to their World Cup campaign means that both India and New Zealand are now fighting for the second spot behind them.

Both the teams are expected to win the rest of their Group 2 matches with ease, which means this game practically serves as a quarter-final.

India were completely flat in their opening match, losing to Pakistan by 10 wickets in a game they were second-best in all departments.

They’d have to be much better against the Kiwis as Kane Williamson’s men are one of the better T20 sides out there, and would have almost beaten Pakistan, the new tournament favourites, had it not been for clutch cameos from Shoaib Malik and Asif Ali.

New Zealand

New Zealand are known to be a freeform side, able to adapt themselves to any situation. That tinkering, for once, backfired against Pakistan as them opening with Daryl Mitchell and then James Neesham’s promotion up the order meant that the lower order was found lacking in the death overs.

That said, their bowling was still good enough to take the run chase down to the wire even when they had only 134 to defend.

There is a slight injury concern for the Black Caps ahead of this game as Martin Guptill picked up a knock on his left toe in the loss to Pakistan. He has participated in recent training sessions, meaning he should be okay to play.

Meanwhile, Adam Milne is back to full fitness and is up for selection as well.

What Do the Sportsbooks Say?

Brand	India	New Zealand
	1.416	2.788
	1.40	2.80
	1.44	2.92

India are the favourites for this fixture. 22Bet has India priced at 1.416 and New Zealand at 2.788. Betway has India available for 1.40 and New Zealand for 2.80. Lastly, Dafabet has India priced at 1.44 and New Zealand at 2.92.

Tipster’s Angle

Tip: New Zealand to win @ 2.92

AS good as India are, we do not feel comfortable betting on them for measly odds of 1.40. In fact, we actually see value in underdogs New Zealand, on whom the odds can go as high as 2.92 (Dafabet). Granted that the Kiwi batting is lighter than India’s but then their bowling, which includes names such as Trent Boult, Tim Southee, and capable spinners in Ish Sodhi and Mitchell Santner, have an edge on Men in Blue’s ball hurlers. We side with New Zealand here.

Tip: KL Rahul total runs over 25.5 @ 1.83

KL Rahul averages 39 runs per innings in T20Is for India but his average against New Zealand soars to 56, which is a clear indication that he likes it against the Kiwis. Boult’s inswingers can trouble him in theory but he should have a much easier time against others. He is our pick to cover the 25.5-run spread. The odds for this play have been sourced from Betway.

Conclusion

India have won each of the last five T20Is played between these two sides, which is clear domination and explains the short odds on them. That said, trends do fail, and when they do, our aim should be to not lose too much, which is why we side with the Kiwis here.