On Wednesday, November 11, New Zealand Cricket (NZC) selectors announced a strong 14-man Test squad for the forthcoming two-game series at home against India. Tom Latham will lead a near full-strength squad.
According to an NZC official statement, Tom Blundell, Devon Conway, and Rachin Ravindra are nearing full match fitness and will be available for the first Test. Ben Sears, Zak Foulkes, and Will O’Rourke are the players who will be missing out on the Test squad due to injuries.
“Tom Blundell (quadricep), Devon Conway (concussion), and Rachin Ravindra (shoulder), are working through their respective injuries and aiming to be available for the first Test. New Zealand’s squad has a similar look to the Test side that toured England earlier this year, with the exceptions of Ben Sears (ankle injury), Zak Foulkes (hip injury), and Will O’Rourke (return-to-play programme), and the addition of Jacob Duffy,” an NZC statement said.
The two-match series, which begins in Wellington at the Basin Reserve, will be New Zealand’s first Test face-off with India since the team’s remarkable 3-0 Test series victory in 2024.
New Zealand’s Test squad vs India
Tom Latham (c), Tom Blundell (wk), Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Nathan Smith, Blair Tickner, Will Young
Meanwhile, New Zealand head coach Rob Walter will be joined by bowling coach Jacob Oram, departing batting coach Luke Ronchi, and newly appointed batting coach BJ Watling, who begins his tenure on November 16.
“This series marks the start of an exciting summer of Test cricket for the BLACKCAPS. The squad is largely consistent with the team that competed in England earlier this year, so it’ll be great to be back together to try and recreate some of that success on home soil,” Walter said.
New Zealand v India Test Series Schedule
1st Test – November 19 to 23 – Basin Reserve, Wellington
2nd Test – November 27 to December 2 – Hagley Oval, Christchurch
