India’s squad for the three-match ODI series against New Zealand was announced on January 3. Shreyas Iyer and Shubman Gill, who missed the last ODI series against South Africa, have been included for the upcoming series. Gill will lead the Indian side, and Iyer has retained his position as the vice-captain.
Iyer’s inclusion will depend on getting fitness clearance from the BCCI Centre of Excellence. Iyer is recovering from a spleen injury he suffered while fielding in a match against Australia in Sydney last October. Gill sustained a neck injury during the Kolkata Test. With the return of Gill and Iyer, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Tilak Varma have been left out, even though both scored centuries in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. Rishabh Pant keeps his place in the squad as the second wicketkeeper behind KL Rahul, while Dhruv Jurel has been dropped.
The biggest name missing is Hardik Pandya, as the CoE has said he is not yet fit to bowl his full 10 overs. With the T20 World Cup starting next month, the selectors have decided to manage his workload and keep him out of this series.
Mohammed Siraj returns to the pace attack, with Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, and Harshit Rana also included. Kuldeep Yadav will lead the spin bowling, supported by all-rounders Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja. Jadeja keeps his spot despite losing out to Axar Patel in Australia.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, who recently played in the Vijay Hazare Trophy for their domestic teams, will continue to play in the only international format in which they are still active. Yashasvi Jaiswal is included as cover for the top order, and Nitish Kumar Reddy is also part of the 15-member squad.
Here is India’s squad for the ODI series against New Zealand:
Shubman Gill (c), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul (wk), Shreyas Iyer (vc)*, Washington Sundar, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Siraj, Harshit Rana, Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Arshdeep Singh, Yashasvi Jaiswal
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