India vs New Zealand 2021: 3 player battles to watch out for

India, minus the services of some of their key players, will take on New Zealand in a two-match Test series starting Thursday (November 23) at Kanpur. Barring Trent Boult, the Kiwis will have a full-strength squad. They will be keen to maintain their winning run in Tests after winning the World Test Championship (WTC) final against India earlier this year.

Despite the lack of big names, there is still enough firepower that India possesses, and that makes for intriguing player match-ups. Ahead of the first Test, we take a look at the three player contests that could shape the outcome of the match.

---

#1 Kane Williamson vs India tweaker Ravichandran Ashwin

Ravichandran Ashwin has been phenomenal for India in Tests. The spinner has been a nemesis for Williamson, dismissing the Kiwi skipper five times in all of their match-ups.

Pragyan Ojha (5) and Zaheer Khan (4) are the other Indian bowlers who have dismissed Williamson the most times and that makes this contest worth the watch.

---

#2 Neil Wagner vs Cheteshwar Pujara

Neil Wagner's nagging and probing lengths will test Pujara's patience. With India's No.3 facing constant scrutiny with every failing knock, the onus will be on him to silence the detractors with big runs, something Pujara has done in the past.

Wagner comes into this Test with 229 wickets to his name from 54 games and will relish the prospect of taking on a batter of Pujara's caliber.

---

#3 Ajinkya Rahane vs Kyle Jamieson

The stand-in India skipper's last five Test innings have scores of 1, 10, 18, 0 and 14. But the recently-concluded Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy saw him play some impressive knocks that included four 50+ scores from five matches.

Up against him will be Kyle Jamieson, who will have to shoulder the burden of Boult's absence. He dismissed Rahane in the WTC final and will look to get the better of the Mumbai batter again.