India's No 1 ODI ranking in danger against New Zealand

With the excitement of the five-match T20 series out of the way, India and New Zealand begin the most crucial leg of the all-format tour.

The five-match ODI series, which begins on Wednesday, is where both sides have channelled most of their energies. We are getting closer to the 2027 ODI World Cup, after all, and conditions in Auckland should be similar to what will be on offer in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia next year, which makes this series an ideal test for the teams.

India might be favourites on paper as they have won every major multi-team tournament since 2024. However, New Zealand could gain the upper hand in this leg of the tour, mainly because of home advantage, a match-ready squad and a superior record in longer formats.

Advantage New Zealand

The Kiwis lost to India in the T20 leg of the ongoing tour 3-2, after getting thrashed by the same opponents during the 20-over World Cup final in Ahmedabad earlier in the year.

But it’s a different story in the longer formats. New Zealand had pulled off the unimaginable in late 2024 when they blanked India 3-0 in a Test series in their backyard, ending over a decade of Indian invincibility at home in ruthless fashion.

The Kiwis continued the trend in the ODI format, clinching the 50-over series in the country at the beginning of the year. India, however, did defeat them in the 2025 ODI Champions Trophy final in Dubai.

Central to New Zealand’s dominance, at least in bilateral series, has been their batting, led by the indefatigable Daryl Mitchell. The middle order batter averages almost 75 against India and four of his nine ODI tons have come against the team in blue; two of them in successive matches at the start of the year.

What’s more, Mitchell was part of the T20s last month and was in blazing form throughout, although he only had one big knock to show for his efforts.

Another batter who is in even better form than Mitchell is Glenn Phillips, who smashed 341 runs in the five T20s at a strike rate of 185.

New Zealand’s pace bowling will also fill the home team with confidence, after largely containing a rampant Indian batting line-up after the third game where Abhishek Sharma and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi smashed 100 runs in five overs.

New Zealand’s entire bowling attack, led by Matt Henry and Jacob Duffy, and a bulk of their batting line-up was part of the T20s, which means they will be in the right frame of mind for the ODIs, having trounced India in the last two 20-over contests.

India’s top spot on the line

India have been blowing hot and cold in formats other than T20s. The New Zealand series will show exactly where they stand with less than a year to go to the World Cup.

Captain Shubman Gill, veterans Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul bolster a team that seems light in the bowling department.

Pace ace Jasprit Bumrah is being preserved for the Test series, with Mohammad Siraj leading the quicks. Gill will be hoping the likes of Anshul Kamboj, Aaqib Nabi and Gurnoor Brar make the most of the opportunity and establish themselves in the line-up as time is running out to find alternatives for a bowling pack that seemed invincible during the 2023 ODI World Cup.

The Indian team will also have one eye on the ODI rankings. They are the top-ranked side in the format on 115 points but New Zealand are right behind them on 109.

If New Zealand win the first three matches, they will overtake India as the No1 ODI team. And if the Kiwis finish the series 4-1, they will cement their position as the top-ranked one-day side.

Last hurrah?

This series is important for another reason – it is most likely the last time cricket fans in New Zealand will get to see Kohli and Rohit play together in international cricket.

Both veterans are likely to retire from the international scene after the 2027 World Cup and this will be the last time to watch them play in blue in the Antipodes.

The desire to see the all-time greats one last time has resulted in high demand for tickets. And it's one of the reasons why the full Indian tour is projected to help New Zealand cricket generate a surplus of around $6 million and wipe out a running deficit.