Although India won the five-match IND vs NZ T20I series, the hosts wouldn’t be wrong to claim the momentum, having won the last two T20Is comprehensively.
India head coach Gautam Gambhir, though, would differ: Gambhir told the Indian T20I team in the dressing room that they had “set the tone for the rest of the tour by winning this series.” GG added, “Before the start of the series, I said that you had the responsibility to set the tone. Now, it is up to the ODI and Test teams to continue from where you have left off.”
Onto the IND vs NZ ODI series, while fans will be excited to see Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Shubman Gill in action, the management will be focusing on preparing players and tactics for the 2027 World Cup.
IND vs NZ: When and where is the India vs New Zealand 1st ODI?
The 1st ODI of the India vs New Zealand ODI series will be played on November 4, Wednesday, at Eden Park in Auckland.
Among the missing players from the India ODI squad vs New Zealand are Jasprit Bumrah (rested), Hardik Pandya (injured), and Prasidh Krishna (injured), while Ravindra Jadeja is apparently dropped from the ODI setup. Prasidh was ruled out of the ODIs recently, with Auqib Nabi named as his replacement.
The BCCI selectors had picked a 16-man squad for the ODI series. Apart from the regulars, the contingent includes Naman Dhir, Anshul Kamboj, Gurnoor Brar, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Arshdeep Singh.
The first-choice players are Gill, Rohit, Kohli, Iyer, KL Rahul, Axar, and Mohammed Siraj. Given Hardik and Bumrah are not part of the series, Reddy and Arshdeep are very likely to feature in the 1st ODI.
Naman Dhir has been mightily impressive in his 10-T20I career so far and seems to be jettisoned in the ODI plans of the management, maybe even for the World Cup.
The last slot could be a shootout between Brar and Auqib. The management didn’t show faith in Kuldeep during the five-match T20I series, and the wrist-spinner is likely to be on the bench in Auckland. Kishan seems to be the backup for keeper Rahul and for the openers.
IND vs NZ: India Playing XI For 1st ODI vs New Zealand
- Shubman Gill (C)
- Rohit Sharma
- Virat Kohli
- Axar Patel
- Shreyas Iyer
- KL Rahul (wk)
- Nitish Kumar Reddy
- Naman Dhir
- Mohammed Siraj
- Arshdeep Singh
- Gurnoor Brar/Auqib Nabi
Meanwhile, New Zealand have been given a double dent as batsman Mark Chapman and all-rounder Rachin Ravindra have been ruled out of the India vs New Zealand ODI series as both continue their recovery from respective injuries. Both had missed the IND vs NZ T20I series.
Tim Seifert, Henry Nicholls (first three ODIs), and all-rounder Dean Foxcroft (last two ODIs) have been added to the New Zealand squad.
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