Who Will Win New Zealand vs West Indies 1st Test?
The opening game of the two-test series between New Zealand and West Indies gets underway from December 1. The Basin Reserve in Wellington will be the venue for this fixture. Live telecast is scheduled to begin at 11 AM local time each day of the match.
NZ vs WI 1st Test: Where to Watch/Live Streaming
TV channels: Ten Sports, Sky Sports, Star Sports
Live Streaming: Bet365, Hotstar, Ozee
Toss Prediction
Since the last three tests at the Basin Reserve have been won by the side that has fielded first, the team that wins the toss here might elect to bowl first. New Zealand have won just one toss in their last six tests at this venue which is why we predict West Indies to win the toss in this match.
Read on for team analysis, betting odds, betting tips and match prediction for NZ vs WI 1st Test....
New Zealand Team News & Playing 11
Team News
Tim Southee is set to miss the first test and he has been replaced by George Worker who will be providing cover in the batting stocks. In his absence, the selectors will have to choose between Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson for sharing the new ball with Trent Boult. Meanwhile, a hip injury has ruled BJ Watling out of this game thereby allowing Tom Blundell to make his test debut.
Key Players
Kane Williamson was New Zealand's star batsman during the home test series against South Africa. The skipper hit two centuries in three matches and finished as the leading run-getter of the series. While he is the key figure in this batting lineup, Tom Latham and Henry Nicholls will be the others to watch out for. Neil Wagner was the standout bowler for the Kiwis in that series with 12 wickets. Trent Boult took five wickets in the only game he played and he together with Wagner will form a threatening pace attack.
Recent Form
New Zealand have won two, drawn two and lost one out of the five test matches they have played this year, all of which have been played at home. After defeating Bangladesh 2-0, they lost a three-match series 0-1 against South Africa.
New Zealand Predicted Playing 11
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Kane Williamson (c), Tom Blundell (wk), Jeet Raval, Tom Latham, Trent Boult, Lockie Ferguson/Matt Henry, Mitchell Santner, Ross Taylor, Neil Wagner, Henry Nicholls, Colin de Grandhomme
West Indies Team News & Playing 11
Team News
Barring just the one change, the West Indian selectors have decided to retain the entire test squad that was part of the team's 1-0 series victory in Zimbabwe. Kyle Hope has been dropped from the 15-man squad owing to his long stretch of underwhelming performances of late and he has been replaced by Sunil Ambris who has delivered on a consistent basis in recent times.
Key Players
Shai Hope scored the most runs for the West Indies in the recent test series in Zimbabwe while Kieran Powell struck a fifty in each of the two games. Both these batsmen have been in good form and the team's batting is going to depend a lot on them. Devendra Bishoo was the leading wicket-taker in that series with 13 wickets and the Windies will be having high expectations on the legspinner. Shannon Gabriel and Kemar Roach will be the main weapons in the seam bowling department.
Recent Form
West Indies have three wins, four losses and one draw in the eight test matches they have played this year. Their most recent test action came in Zimbabwe last month in October where they defeated the hosts 1-0 in a two-game series.
West Indies Predicted Playing 11
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Jason Holder (c), Kraigg Brathwaite, Kieran Powell, Sunil Ambris, Devendra Bishoo, Shai Hope, Roston Chase, Shane Dowrich, Jermaine Blackwood, Kemar Roach, Shannon Gabriel
Team Form in Last Five Matches (most recent first)
New Zealand: D L D W W
West Indies: D W L W L
New Zealand vs West Indies Head to Head
New Zealand and West Indies have played 45 test matches against each other in the past and both have won 13 times each with the remaining 19 matches having ended in draws. At the Basin Reserve, the two teams have met seven times in this format and the hosts lead the scoreline 4-2.
New Zealand vs West Indies 1st Test Betting Odds
New Zealand have beaten the West Indies four times in their previous five encounters in test cricket. The Kiwis are playing at home and they begin as hot favorites amongst the bookmakers to win the first test at extremely short odds of 1.37 on Betfair and 1.33 on Bet365. West Indies on the other hand are huge underdogs priced at 8.6 and 7 with the respective bookmakers. A drawn game is up at 6.2 on Betfair and 5.5 on Bet365.
New Zealand vs West Indies 1st Test Prediction
New Zealand are coming off an impressive performance in India and they have a strong record in tests at home. West Indies last beat New Zealand in a test match at this ground way back in 1995. Since then, there have been ten tests between these two sides in New Zealand of which six have been won by the hosts and four have resulted in stalemates. The Kiwis definitely have an upper hand playing in their own backyard and so we predict them to win this match. A draw would be the next best option.
Final Verdict: Back New Zealand to beat West Indies in the first test at 1.37 on 1xbet and 1.33 on Bet365.
Dec 01, 2017
03:30 IST / 2:00 GMT
Basin Reserve - Wellington, New Zealand
NZ vs WI 
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