IND vs NZ T20Is: Kiwi skipper Santner wary of Bhuvneshwar and has 'plans' for Sooryvanshi

India's tour of New Zealand starts with the first of five T20Is on Thursday (Oct 22) in Christchurch, and Kiwi skipper Mitchell Santner is wary of not only India's batting prowess but the return of Bhuvneshwar Kumar as well. The two teams last met in the T20 World Cup 2026 final, which India had won by 96 runs to win their second successive title. India are coming off a 2-2 series against the West Indies at home, which was high-scoring, and Santner believes that bowlers, especially Kumar, who is making a comeback, will find the conditions in New Zealand helpful.

Santner backs returning pacer Bhuvneshwar to do well in New Zealand

Coming back to the side after two back-to-back IPL winning seasons with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), Bhuvneshwar Kumar would be eager to perform. Speaking to the media on the eve of the first T20I in Christchurch, Santner also backed Bhuvi to come out good in New Zealand conditions.

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"I think Bhuvi will love these conditions in New Zealand. If there's anything in the wicket, he'll find something out of it," said Santner. "[Even] on some flat ones in India, he still manages to nip the ball and swing the ball. So with the new ball out here especially, he'll be a challenge."

The Vaibhav Sooryavanshi question

India have also included teenage batter Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in the T20I squad; however, the question remains on whether he'll play or not. Santner, speaking on Sooryavanshi, acknowledged that the batter will play an important role for India in the future if not this series.

"I think he has a huge part to play for India, whether it's this series or not, but in the future. If he does get a crack this series, we've seen what he can do, and guys have found it quite hard to stop him. I know England, in the series away, went quite short and hard at a lot of the Indian batters, but I think we've seen in the IPL how aggressive he can be, so we've got some plans for him if he happens to play."

Complete schedule of IND vs NZ T20I series