Sunday, 11 January 2026
Sunday, 11 January 2026
Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma’s prime form is expected to underpin India’s push in the ODI format as the hosts take on a new-look New Zealand in the first match of the three-ODI series in Vadodara on Sunday.
Even with attention firmly on the T20 World Cup that is less than a month away, Kohli and Rohit will remain the focal point across the three matches scheduled over the next seven days.
There has been no shortage of game-time for the two senior batters, who featured in a couple of matches each in the Vijay Hazare Trophy league round, amassing big scores to underline their continuing relevance.
India’s leadership group, however, will closely watch captain Shubman Gill’s response after his omission from the T20 World Cup squad.
Gill’s recent form has been under scrutiny, compounded by injuries that ruled him out of a large part of the series against South Africa late last year.
His return to the ODI XI is likely to push Yashasvi Jaiswal out of the top order, despite the latter scoring his maiden ODI century in the final match against South Africa.
The comeback of Shreyas Iyer is set to bring stability to the middle order after a phase of largely unsuccessful experimentation.
The 31-year-old is expected to reclaim his preferred No 4 position. KL Rahul’s continued role as wicketkeeper and lower-order batter is likely to keep Rishabh Pant out of the playing XI, with Pant remaining the second-choice option in the 50-over format.
While Iyer, Pant and Mohammed Siraj were absent from India’s preparations for the ODI series in Kotambi until Saturday, Ravindra Jadeja trained at full intensity on Friday, indicating his availability for the opening match.
Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya have been rested from the ODI series to keep them fresh for T20 assignments, placing the onus of pace bowling on Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana and Prasidh Krishna.
Spin duties will be shared by Kuldeep Yadav, Washington Sundar and Jadeja in conditions where evening dew and the generally flat nature of wickets across the country tend to shift the emphasis towards containment rather than aggressive wicket-taking.
The match will mark the first men’s international at the new Baroda Cricket Association Stadium in Kotambi.
The venue has previously hosted a women’s ODI series between India and the West Indies.
For New Zealand, their defeat to India in last year’s Champions Trophy final holds little relevance, with the current series offering a chance to assess new and second-line players.
Regardless of personnel, the Black Caps are expected to adhere to the team mantra that proved effective during their 2024-25 tour of India, when they whitewashed the hosts 3-0 in the Test series.
During that tour, several New Zealand players spoke about wanting to “fire the first shot” against India.
On this visit, the team mantra is "you are where your feet are", aimed at keeping players focused on the task at hand rather than external challenges, especially with several frontline players unavailable and the series being played in Indian conditions.
Mitchell Santner is unavailable for the ODIs due to a groin injury, while Tom Latham has returned home for the birth of his first child.
Former captain Kane Williamson is in South Africa fulfilling his T20 commitments in the SA20.
Rachin Ravindra and fast bowler Jacob Duffy have been rested, and Matt Henry, returning from a calf tear, is concentrating on regaining fitness for the T20I series with the World Cup in mind.
Michael Bracewell will lead the side in Santner’s absence, with Santner set to return for the T20Is.
Attention will also be on the performances of all-rounder Kyle Jamieson and 23-year-old leg-spinner Adithya Ashok.
Jayden Lennox has been added to the squad as a like-for-like replacement for Santner.
Despite the presence of several new and inexperienced faces, New Zealand still possess considerable batting strength in Devon Conway, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Will Young and Glenn Phillips.
India squad: Shubman Gill (captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul (wicketkeeper), Rishabh Pant (wicketkeeper), Ravindra Jadeja, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj, Harshit Rana.
New Zealand squad: Michael Bracewell (captain), Devon Conway (wicketkeeper), Mitchell Hay (wicketkeeper), Nick Kelly, Henry Nicholls, Will Young, Josh Clarkson, Zak Foulkes, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Adithya Ashok, Kristian Clarke, Kyle Jamieson, Jayden Lennox, Michael Rae.
The match is scheduled to start at 1.30 pm.
