Rahul Dravid’s reign as head coach of India will begin with a three-match T20I series and two Test matches against New Zealand at home. The bilateral series begins with T20Is, commencing on November 17 at Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur. The two-Test series will kick off on November 25 in Kanpur.
T20Is
Squad
Rohit Sharma is appointed captain for the T20Is against New Zealand. The ‘hitman’ has led India in 19 T20Is, winning 15 of them. The selectors have rested Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja, and Mohammed Shami. Yuzvendra Chahal returned to the fold, while Ruturaj Gaikwad, Venkatesh Iyer, Harshal Patel, and Avesh Khan made it to the 16-member squad after consistent performances for Chennai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Delhi, respectively, etc.
India: Rohit Sharma (captain), K L Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Rishabh Pant, Ishan Kishan, Venkatesh Iyer, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Mohammed Siraj, Deepak Chahar, Avesh Khan, Harshal Patel
New Zealand, who announced an unchanged squad from the 20-over World Cup in UAE for the three T20Is, will miss the services of Devon Conway after the left-handed batsman suffered a hand injury in the World Cup 2021 semi-final against England. The world champions will be playing their first T20I series in India since 2017.
New Zealand: Martin Guptill, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Tim Seifert, Todd Astle, Trent Boult, Tim Southee (captain), Ish Sodhi, Kyle Jamieson, Lockie Ferguson, Adam Milne, Mark Chapman
Schedule
1st T20I - November 17 (Jaipur)
2nd T20I - November 19 (Ranchi)
3rd T20I - November 21 (Kolkata)
Venues
Jaipur’s Sawai Mansingh Stadium is the venue for the opening match in the series. The second and third T20Is will be played at JSCA International Stadium Complex in Ranchi and the iconic Eden Gardens, respectively.
Timings
The all three T20Is will begin at 7 PM.
Test Matches
Squad
India will be eyeing another series win at home when they face the World Test champions. Virat Kohli is rested for the first Test, while Mohammad Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, and Rishabh Pant will sit out of the series. Shreyas Iyer earned his maiden Test call-up, and off-spinner Jayant Yadav, who last played for India in 2017, is also included in the 15-member squad.
India: Mayank Agarwal, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (captain), Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Wriddhiman Saha, KS Bharat, Ravindra Jadeja, Ishant Sharma, Ravichandran Ashwin, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Axar Patel, Jayant Yadav, Prasidh Krishna
New Zealand will be in action for the first time since winning the Test Championship final against India in Southampton. Led by Kane Williamson, New Zealand have a strong squad despite the absence of Trent Boult and Conway. All-rounder Rachin Ravindra and Glenn Phillips, too, have made it to the Test squad.
New Zealand: Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Kane Williamson (captain), Ross Taylor, Henry Nicholls, Tom Blundell, Will Young, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Neil Wagner, Kyle Jamieson, Ajaz Patel, Will Somerville
Schedule
1st Test - November 25-29 (Kanpur)
2nd Test - December 3-7 (Mumbai)
Venues
Green Park Stadium in Kanpur will host the opening Test match. Both teams head to Mumbai for the second and final fixture of the series. Wankhede Stadium will be the venue for the series decider.
Timings
The two matches will start at 9:30 AM.
Parameswaran Sankaranarayanan
Parameswaran Sankaranarayan is a sports enthusiast who has worked in print, website, and other digital platforms. He was part of the editorial team of first-ever Indian football-based website - IndianFootball.com (now defunct) - and passionately follows the latest happenings in world football. During his time as a journalist, he had the opportunity to interact with some of the iconic personalities in Indian sports and witness some memorable moments in Indian football.
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