Sarfaraz Khan has returned to India's playing XI for the first Test against New Zealand in Bengaluru.
Rohit Sharma won the toss and chose to bat first on the second day after the first day was completely washed out due to rain. The India captain confirmed that they have made two changes to the XI that featured in the Kanpur Test against Bangladesh.
As was reported ahead of the Test, Shubman Gill has missed out on selection due to a niggle and has been replaced by Sarfaraz Khan, who is returning to the Test side after having played three games in the England series earlier this year.
Another major change is the return of Kuldeep Yadav to the bowling lineup. The left-arm wrist spinner comes in place of seamer Akash Deep, making it a three-pronged spin attack for India with R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja being the other two spinners.
For New Zealand, Kane Williamson misses out as he is recovering from injury. The visitors have gone with three seamers and two spinners in their bowling lineup, with the second spinner being all-rounder Glenn Phillips.
Also read: Explained: Why Kane Williamson isn't playing in the first India-New Zealand Test
India vs New Zealand, first Test: Playing XIs
India
Rohit Sharma (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Sarfaraz Khan, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd Siraj.
🚨 Playing XI 🚨
— BCCI (@BCCI) October 17, 2024
Take a look at #TeamIndia's Playing XI for the Test series opener 💪
Match Updates ▶️ https://t.co/8qhNBrs1td#INDvNZ | @IDFCFIRSTBANK pic.twitter.com/cUzPXCacri
New Zealand
Tom Latham (c), Devon Conway, Will Young, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell (wk), Glenn Phillips, Matt Henry, Tim Southee, Ajaz Patel, Will O'Rourke.
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