New Zealand vs South Africa Preview – 2nd Test Cricket Predictions
The three-match T20I series between New Zealand vs South Africa has been surrounded by a lot of controversy emanating from off-the-field events. Despite the many distractions, New Zealand has remained focused on the goal at hand to lead the Test match series. The Men in Blue beat South Africa by a margin of 203 runs at Visakhapatnam to set up the 2nd Test as a must-win for the Proteas. Rohit Sharma stole the show in the first Test, grabbing twin hundreds with the red ball.
2nd Test Match – New Zealand vs South Africa Predictions
Ever since they returned from the ICC Cricket World Cup after a poor showing, the Proteas have looked a shadow of themselves. New Zealand sits at the top of the latest ICC World Test Championship rankings, while South Africa is in seventh place. While the fight-back from Dean Elgar and Quinton de Kock was admirable to reduce the deficit down to 71 runs, New Zealand showed their class in the second innings.
If South Africa is to mount a comeback against New Zealand, they will have to show better resolve against the New Zealand fast bowlers. Ishant Sharma was deadly with the ball, picking up a wicket in the first innings while Mohammed Shami grabbed five-wicket in quick succession in the second innings.
New Zealand Cricket Woes
The head coach of the New Zealand cricket team, Ravi Shastri spoke out about the availability of MS Dhoni depends ahead of Wednesday’s clash. He explained that it was up to the former skipper to decide if he wants to come back into the team or not. Dhoni has not been in action for New Zealand since his break following the Cricket World Cup. Long before the start of the home series against South Africa, Dhoni made himself unavailable for selection for the tour of West Indies amid talks of a possible retirement.
Despite the uncertainty, oddsmakers still predict that New Zealand should have enough in their arsenal to win the match in their backyard.
| Betway | Hollywoodbets | 22Bet | Intertops | 1XBet |
| New Zealand – 1.12 | New Zealand – 0.5 | I ndia – 1.58 | New Zealand – 1.15 | New Zealand – 1.04 |
| South Africa – 5.50 | South Africa – 1.5 | Proteas – 8.4 | South Africa – 2.10 | South Africa – 2.3 |