New Zealand National Cricket Team vs United Arab Emirates National Cricket Team Match: New Zealand will take on the United Arab Emirates in a Group D match of the ICC T20 World Cup at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Tuesday, February 10, 2026. The match is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. IST. The contest will be the first game of the tournament for the UAE, placed in one of the toughest groups alongside New Zealand, Afghanistan and South Africa. Afghanistan reached the semifinals in the last edition, while South Africa finished runners-up in the 2024 tournament. New Zealand opened their campaign against Afghanistan and will look to build momentum in their second group match.
Squads
New Zealand squad: Mitchell Santner (captain), Finn Allen, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Lockie Ferguson, Tim Seifert and Ish Sodhi.
UAE squad: Muhammad Waseem (captain), Alishan Sharafu, Aryansh Sharma, Dhruv Parashar, Haider Ali, Harshit Kaushik, Junaid Siddique, Mayank Kumar, Muhammad Arfan, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Zohaib, Rohid Khan, Sohaib Khan and Simranjeet Singh.
Probable Playing XIs
New Zealand: Finn Allen, Tim Seifert, Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Daryl Mitchell, Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Mitchell Santner (captain), Jacob Duffy, Lockie Ferguson and Matt Henry or Kyle Jamieson.
UAE: Aryansh Sharma, Muhammad Waseem (captain), Muhammad Zohaib, Alishan Sharafu, Harshit Kaushik, Sohaib Khan, Dhruv Parashar, Haider Ali, Muhammad Arfan, Junaid Siddique and Muhammad Jawadullah.
Pitch and Weather
The MA Chidambaram Stadium traditionally assists spin bowlers. The average first-innings total at the venue is around 150 to 160. Dew may play a role in the second innings of a day-night match, while the outfield is generally quick.
Chennai is expected to witness warm conditions. While there is a slight chance of rain, it is unlikely to disrupt the match.
Broadcast Details
The match will be broadcast live in India on the Star Sports Network. Live streaming will be available on the JioHotstar app with a subscription.
New Zealand enter the contest as favourites and among the title contenders. The UAE will aim to cause an upset in their opening game of the tournament.