Ahead of the highly anticipated clash between India and New Zealand, former New Zealand batsman Ross Taylor praised New Zealand and their stand-in captain, Tom Latham, for their exceptional performances. However, the former New Zealand cricketer tagged India as the favorite to win the ICCs top event, regardless of the outcome of the match. Battle for top spotThe match between India and New Zealand is set to take place at Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala on Sunday. Both teams are undefeated in the tournament, with four wins each and eight points. New Zealand holds the top spot in the points table standings due to a superior net run rate.I arrived in India on Friday, and its fantastic to be here for what promises to be an exciting clash between the two remaining unbeaten teams, Ross stated in an exclusive column to ICC. He commended New Zealands impressive performance, particularly their victory over England in their opening match.Ross mentioned that apart from a few challenging overs of spin against Afghanistan, the New Zealand team has consistently played dominant and excellent cricket throughout the tournament. He praised the replacements who stepped in for injured players like Tim Southee and Kane Williamson, highlighting the contributions of Will Young and Rachin Ravindra.Incredible performances by Rachin Ravindra and Will Young Ross particularly lauded Rachin Ravindra for grabbing his opportunity and becoming a potential asset to the New Zealand side for years to come. He highlighted Rachins surprising inclusion in the starting lineup and his strong performance has justified his spot in higher batting order.Rachin Ravindra smashed 215 runs in four matches at an average of 71.66, with one century and fifty, and scalped three wickets while Will Young scored 124 runs in three innings with two fifties and stood out as key batter for New Zealand.Indias formidable top-order battingNew Zealands legendary batter hailed Indias top-order batsmen, including Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, and Virat Kohli, as well as the performances of pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah and spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja. He also pointed out that India has found a good middle-order combination with Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul.
