Can 'Mahi' yet again turn Feroz Shah Kotla into an impregnable fortress under his command?

The Feroz Shah Kotla stadium at Delhi shall be host to the second ODI between Indian and New Zealand on Thursday. The Indians have a deadly combination of a silent assassin and a prolific run machine who provide the cutting edge to the Men in Blue in the limited overs format.

While MS Dhoni carves out match winning strategies in mind with calm demeanour, his heir apparent Virat Kohli slays opposition with his destructive yet elegant stroke play. The Kiwis shall once again have to combat this lethal combination to overcome the Indian challenge at Delhi.

Kotla has proved to be a happy hunting ground for Indian captain MS Dhoni who has never lost an ODI game. Dhoni has led the Indian side to five successive victories at the venue. Besides his captaincy, 'Mahi' has been amongst the runs at this venue and would once again look to contribute with the willow.

Dhoni who has been under the scanner for not providing enough impetus towards the end of the innings, a role which he played with perfection, has been elevated up the order by the management. Dhoni would like to play his new role as a run accumulator to perfection.

The Indian skipper, a master at reading the wicket and situations shall look to get the best out of his men. He has the requisite arsenal at his disposal to do it with both bat and ball. Dhoni known for his liking for the spinners has Amit Mishra and Aksar Patel who can control the game for him in the middle overs.

Dhoni’s trump card in the batting order has been Virat Kohli. Kohli has been amazingly consistent in ODI cricket and become the backbone of the batting order. Virat coming into the match at the back of a stellar performance (85 runs) in the opener at Dharamsala, would be high on confidence.

VIRAT KOHLI - THE RUN SCORING MACHINE

The Delhi Lad would relish the challenge of taking on the Black Caps at his home venue. Virat Kohli would love to produce a master class in front of his home crowd. Kohli has played some spectacular knocks for both his state side at the Kotla. The prolific run scoring machine boasts of an impressive record in ODI’s at Kotla. In his five innings at Kotla, Virat has amassed 193 runs at a staggering average of 64. 

The 'master chaser' would once again like to play the sheet anchors role to perfection and help India cross the line in the second ODI. When the two great servants of Indian cricket get their act together, much can’t go wrong.

Meanwhile the Kiwis would be expecting to put up a better show than their dismal outing in the series opener. So the fans are set for thrilling contest between India and the Kiwis. While India would look to press home the advantage by taking a 2-0 lead, the Kiwis would like to draw level by winning the encounter at Delhi.