Auckland VS Somerset


Auckland bat in must-win game
A close loss to Kolkata Knight Riders on Monday made the second qualifying game a must-win match for Auckland. Their captain Gareth Hopkins chose to bat on a pitch he thought would become lower and slower as the match progressed. Auckland went in with an unchanged squad.
Somerset only landed in India a little more than 24 hours ago. They were without regular captain Marcus Trescothick, wicketkeeper-batsman Craig Kieswetter and spinner George Dockrell. Somerset though have left-arm spinner Murali Kartik, who has been effective both in the IPL and the England domestic Twenty20 season, and his knowledge of Indian conditions could prove crucial on a track helping spinners.
Hours of play (local time): 20.00 start, First Session 20.00-21.20, Interval 21.20-21.40, Second Session 21.40-23.00
Weather forecast Temperature: 22 C, Haze
Auckland team squad
GJ Hopkins*†, AR Adams, JHK Adams, MD Bates, C de Grandhomme, MJ Guptill, RM Hira, AK Kitchen, BP Martin, CS Martin, KD Mills, C Munro, RJ Quiney, DR Tuffey, L Vincent
Somerset team squad
AC Thomas*, AWR Barrow, JC Buttler, NRD Compton, AJ Dibble, GH Dockrell, JC Hildreth, GM Hussain, M Kartik, C Kieswetter†, SP Kirby, CAJ Meschede, SD Snell†, AV Suppiah, PD Trego, RE van der Merwe