The second T20I of the Australia tour of New Zealand 2025 is a must-win for the Black Caps to keep the Chappell-Hadlee T20I Trophy series alive. Australia takes the 1-0 lead, having successfully chased a challenging total in the series opener, thanks to a masterful performance by captain Mitchell Marsh. The series remains at Bay Oval, suggesting another high-scoring encounter is on the cards. New Zealand’s batting depth will be tested against Australia’s formidable pace attack, while the Black Caps’ bowlers are under immense pressure to find variations and restrict the flow of runs in the shortest format.
Australia’s dominance and New Zealand’s challenge
Australia, maintaining a near-perfect T20I record over the past year, is expected to come out with aggressive intent to seal the series 2-0. They showcased their chase mastery in the first T20I, highlighting the depth of their batting even without key players like Glenn Maxwell and Josh Inglis. The destructive opening pair of Travis Head and Mitchell Marsh will look to exploit the batting-friendly conditions and short boundaries. For New Zealand, the focus will be on the bowling unit. Despite the return of pacer Kyle Jamieson, the Black Caps need their experienced campaigners like Matt Henry and Ish Sodhi to deliver disciplined performances and take crucial wickets to dismantle the powerful Australian middle-order featuring Tim David and Marcus Stoinis.
NZ vs AUS, 2nd T20I, Australia tour of New Zealand 2025: Match Details
| Date and Time | October 3, 2025: 11:45 AM IST / 7:15 PM Local / 06:15 AM GMT |
| Venue | Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui, Tauranga |
NZ vs AUS, Head-to-Head Record in T20Is:
| Matches Played | 20 |
| Australia won | 14 |
| New Zealand won | 6 |
| No results/Tied | 0 |
Mount Maunganui Pitch Report
The Bay Oval is a batting paradise known for high scores. The pitch offers true bounce and carry, which is excellent for stroke play, and the fast outfield assists the batters. Historically, the ground has favoured the team batting first, with a strong preference for setting a target rather than chasing, although Australia successfully overturned this trend in the first match. Pacers get some early movement, but disciplined bowling is essential to restrict big totals.
Also READ: Adar Poonawalla’s cryptic comments spark fresh Virat Kohli’s RCB acquisition rumours
Squads:
New Zealand: Michael Bracewell (c), Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Zak Foulkes, Matt Henry, Bevon Jacobs, Kyle Jamieson, Daryl Mitchell, Rachin Ravindra, Tim Robinson, Ben Sears, Tim Seifert, Ish Sodhi
Australia: Mitchell Marsh (c), Sean Abbott, Xavier Bartlett, Alex Carey (wk), Tim David, Ben Dwarshuis, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Matt Kuhnemann, Josh Phillipe, Mitchell Owen, Matthew Short, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa
NZ vs AUS, Today’s match prediction:
Case 1:
- New Zealand wins the toss and bats first
- New Zealand powerplay score: 50-60
- New Zealand overall score: 175-185
Case 2:
- Australia wins the toss and bats first
- Australia powerplay score: 55-65
- Australia overall score: 185-195
Match result: Australia to win the contest.
Also READ: ILT20 2026 Squads: Full teams list after the inaugural players’ auction
