The series between New Zealand and India is in its final phase with the T20Is and ODIs done and dusted. The teams are sailing in the same ship winning 1 series each with a clean-sweep. Now, to assert their dominance in the tournament they’ll be eyeing at grabbing the 2-match Test series as well.
The hosts have announced their 13-member squad for the upcoming test series against India which is scheduled to begin on February 21. Some major changes can be witnessed in the squad as the Blackcaps have dropped their one of the most successful spinners of present times, Mitchell Santner for the upcoming series.
A total of three players have been axed from the hosts’ side including the likes of Jeet Raval, Matt Henry along with Santner. Meanwhile, Trent Boult has recovered from his injury and will be joining the team for the series.
Furthermore, left-arm spinner Ajaz Patel has also been recalled to the squad for the upcoming Tests against the Men in Blue. Paceman Kyle Jamieson has been included in place of the injured Lockie Ferguson.
“It’s terrific to have Trent back with us and we’re looking forward to the energy and experience he adds to the group alongside his obvious class with the ball in hand,” New Zealand coach Gary Stead said in a team release on Monday.
“Kyle will offer us a point of difference with the bounce he could extract on what is traditionally a good surface in Wellington,” he said.
The first test between the teams will begin on February 21 and will be played at the Basin Reserve in Wellington. The squads for both the teams are:
New Zealand squad: Kane Williamson (c), Tom Blundell, Trent Boult, Colin de Grandhomme, Kyle Jamieson, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Ajaz Patel, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor, Neil Wagner, BJ Watling.
India Squad: Virat Kohli (Captain), Mayank Agarwal, Prithvi Shaw, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (vice-captain), Hanuma Vihari, Wriddhiman Saha (wicket-keeper), Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), R. Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Umesh Yadav, Mohd. Shami, Navdeep Saini, Ishant Sharma
