Kane Williamson’s outfit boasts as many as six spin options and an equal number of pacers.

New Zealand skipper Williamson was confident that the balance in his side will help them come to terms with the variable conditions witnessed at the T20 World Cup thus far.

“The different venues, I think, provide different challenges and different areas to target. So as a team, it's just trying to be smart with that. [We] approach it with a well-balanced squad so you can try and use the resource that's required really.

“So yeah, I mean, as a team, it comes back to the focus that we have on our game and how we want to skin it, I suppose, which can look different every day. But that commitment to those roles is important.”

In contrast to the general high-scoring trends in the game's shortest format, the Men’s T20 World Cup has witnessed a string of low scores in its initial stage.

New Zealand were seen practicing each aspect of their game in the nets, including their big-hitting prowess.

Captain Williamson observed this changing pattern on the scoresheet but believed there would be some high-scoring games in the near future in the event.

“Yeah, I mean, we've seen, I suppose, a trend already,” Williamson said. “And it's been quite different to perhaps some of the cricket we've watched in the last year or two where the conditions [here] have been challenging, perhaps to six hitting or certainly a lot of regular sixes.

“But no doubt there'll still be a place for that. But I think the balance between sort of navigating different periods at play to give your team opportunities to do that is probably important.”

The two sides have encountered only once in the T20 international format, in the group stage of the Men’s T20 World Cup 2021, where the Black Caps downed Afghanistan by chasing a 125-run target in 18.1 overs.

In Group C, with Uganda, West Indies, Papua New Guinea, Afghanistan, and New Zealand battling it out for a top-two finish to ensure qualification into the next round, the Afghans have had quite a kickstart with a convincing 125-run win over Uganda, which has helped them register a remarkable net run rate of +6.25.

As the encounter between the two teams draws closer, Williamson was full of praise for how Afghanistan has developed over the years from a spin-centric team to a well-balanced side that can be just as good in other aspects of the game, including batting and fast bowling.

“They're a team that have just grown and grown every year and certainly players that have been involved in some of the franchise cricket are well aware of the capabilities of the talent and the world-class skills that they have within their side.”

“They've always had really strong spin options, but now they're a very well-balanced side with the seamers that they have and the batting as well. So, a tough challenge and a team that's playing well and growing a lot.”

But Williamson added that his side intended to focus on their cricket rather than think much about the opposition’s gameplan.

“For us, we know that there are strong teams throughout this competition and often [it] comes back to our cricket. We say that often it's about the cricket we want to play and focusing on our plans and roles that we have within our side.”