🔗 Share this article

Introduction

Greetings cricket enthusiasts! Welcome to the second match of the live updates of the men’s T20 international clash for the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy. Australia lead the series 1-0 after beating the hosts by six wickets in the opener on Wednesday.

The win was anchored by the broad shoulders of captain Mitchell Marsh, who thundered 85 from 43 deliveries with nine fours and five sixes at a strike-rate of 197.67.

The Black Caps were dominated with the ball but will take solace from their showing with the bat. Despite losing three wickets in the initial overs, they recovered to reach what appeared a respectable 181, spearheaded by Tim Robinson’s brilliant maiden century.

Weather Update

The latest weather report…

Unfortunately, it’s a wet day at Mount Maunganui and the drizzle, which ceased an hour ago, has started again. While the weather radar shows clearing conditions approaching, for now the toss and announcement of the team lineups for today will be postponed.

However, I’m informed Bay Oval has a drainage system that disposes of liquids efficiently, so hopefully we see play shortly.

Squad Updates

Here are the squads for today…

NEW ZEALAND
Tim Seifert (wicketkeeper), Devon Conway, Tim Robinson, Mark Chapman, 5 Daryl Mitchell, 6 Michael Bracewell (capt), 7 Jimmy Neesham, Matt Henry, Ben Sears, Ish Sodhi, Jacob Duffy

An altered squad for the Black Caps with allrounder Jimmy Neesham added to the team, fast bowler Ben Sears included, and veteran leg-break specialist Ish Sodhi also included.

AUSTRALIA
1 Travis Head, 2 Mitchell Marsh (capt), Matt Short, Tim David, 5 Alex Carey (wk), Marcus Stoinis, Mitch Owen, Xavier Bartlett, Sean Abbott, Adam Zampa, 11 Josh Hazlewood

One change for the Aussies with fast-bowler Sean Abbott taking the place of Ben Dwarshuis.

Toss Result

Coin toss: New Zealand won the toss and will bowl first

The New Zealand captain calls correctly and chooses to field at the Australians. The Australian skipper likely would’ve done the same so an early win for the hosts. However, the Kiwis will need to start a lot better than they did in the first match where the visitors galloped to 67 runs in the first five overs before the Kiwis picked up their initial breakthrough.

Game Setup

More good news, everyone: the covers are off at Bay Oval and we have official word that this match will go ahead as an 18-over contest.

Player Highlights

Tim Robinson’s first T20I century in Game One was a ripper in a defeat. The New Zealand were six for three in the early stages, with the Australian paceman dismissing the opener in the first over and Ben Dwarshuis taking two wickets in consecutive deliveries to send Devon Conway and Mark Chapman back to the pavilion before Robinson walked out confidently. In his 13th T20 international, the tousle-haired 23-year-old made an not out 106 off 66 balls.

He hit 6 boundaries and 5 sixes along the way and concluded his innings in fine fashion, with a boundary and a maximum from the final two balls!

Injury Updates

Several fans leaving at the stadium so we hope to have a toss and the confirmed teams for you soon. But, there are a number of players missing across the board through fitness issues, Test commitments, family reasons or unusual incidents.

Weirdest of all, both squads lost their key all-rounders on the eve of the series in bizarre training mishaps. On Tuesday, Black Caps gun Rachin Ravindra collided with an signboard during a fielding drill and sustained a deep laceration to his face that required stitches and ruled him out for the series.

That very day, Aussie veteran Glenn Maxwell had one of his powerful wrists fractured while bowling in the nets due to hard-hitting colleague Mitchell Owen. It means Maxwell is a no-show for this T20 series and may be in question for the domestic season too.

Previous Match Recap

As the players go through their last preparations at Bay Oval, we might take a look back at the first match. Both teams arrived in hot form, with Australia on a tear of 15 victories from their previous 17 T20 games and the Kiwis having won 9 out of 11 matches in 2025.

Women’s World Cup Connection

Naturally today’s T20I is also a tasty entree for the Women’s World Cup being played in India. The Australian women’s team are aiming to win a seventh 50-over title, and be the first women’s team to claim consecutive titles since the late 80s. They began their tournament with a win against the White Ferns and this evening square off against Sri Lanka.

Indigenous star Ashleigh Gardner scored the first century of the tournament, saving her team from a precarious position with a composed 115 off 83 balls that helped her team to post 326 runs in 49.3 overs. The Australians went on to beat the White Caps by 89 runs.