India's probable Test, ODI, and T20I squads for the upcoming series against New Zealand
India is set to play a 5-match T20I series, a 3-match ODI series and a 2-match Test series as part of their New Zealand tour which commences later this month. With the ICC T20 World cup scheduled to take place in the second half of this year in Australia, India will be looking to tighten up all the prevailing loose ends of their team before the mega tournament commences.
In limited-overs cricket, India's top-order and bowling department have been highly consistent in the last few years. The one area of concern for the team was that they struggled to get their middle-order combination right. Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant played a couple of useful innings in the recent past and showed some promise in the middle-order role. Virat Kohli and co. will be anticipating that these players will continue their good form during the upcoming series and cement their spots in the playing XI.
Also see - India Australia schedule
Here are India's probable Test, ODI, and T20I squads for the upcoming series against New Zealand :
Test Squad
India has been one of the most consistent performers in Test cricket over the last few years. After promotion to the opening position, Rohit Sharma had a highly productive series against South Africa where he scored in excess of 580 runs across 3 Test matches. He along with Mayank Agarwal is set to be India's primary opening combination for the upcoming Test series against New Zealand. Shubman Gill will be the backup choice for the opening slot as he was warming bench during the previous Test series.
India's middle-order already looks settled so there will be no changes in this department. Hanuma Vihari will get a chance in the playing XI only when the management decides to play with 4 bowlers and an extra batsman. In the bowling department, Jasprit Bumrah will be making his comeback into the Test cricket after missing the last few series due to injury issues. Navdeep Saini might be selected ahead of third spinner Kuldeep Yadav as the pitches in New Zealand are expected to assist pacers. The rest of the bowling department will be unchanged.
Probable Squad: Virat Kohli (capt), Rohit Sharma, Mayank Agarwal, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Hanuma Vihari, Ravindra Jadeja, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Rishabh Pant (wk), R Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Navdeep Saini
ODI Squad
The selectors might not make any drastic changes to the ODI squad as most of the players have cemented their spots by performing consistently. Hardik Pandya will in all likelihood make his comeback into the side after a lengthy injury layoff. Shivam Dube will make way for him in the squad. The rest of the squad is expected to be unchanged from the previous series India played.
Kedar Jadhav will be under pressure to perform consistently as he will be facing tough competition from Manish Pandey who has been warming benches for a long time.
Probable Squad: Virat Kohli (C), Rohit Sharma (VC), Rishabh Pant (WK), Shikhar Dhawan, Hardik Pandya, Shreyas Iyer, Ravindra Jadeja, Kedar Jadhav, Manish Pandey, KL Rahul, Navdeep Saini, Mohammed Shami, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal, and Kuldeep Yadav.
T20 Squad
For the first time in their rich cricketing history, India will be playing a 5-match T20I series. They will look to use this series to prepare for the upcoming T20I World Cup which will be hosted by Australia. For the upcoming series, two changes are expected in the squad that played against Sri Lanka. All-rounder Hardik Pandya might replace Shivam Dube in the squad. India will then have the luxury to go in with 4 bowlers and a pace-bowling allrounder the combination they usually prefer in the white-ball cricket format.
Also, Rohit Sharma will be back in the top-order after taking much-deserved rest during the Sri Lanka series. The selection of his opening partner is going to be an interesting dilemma as an experienced Shikhar Dhawan and a dynamic KL Rahul are in the race for one spot. The rest of the squad is expected to remain unaltered.
Probable Squad: Virat Kohli (captain), Rohit Sharma (vc), Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Hardik Pandya, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Navdeep Saini, Shardul Thakur, Manish Pandey, Washington Sundar
Note: The squad to the New Zealand tour has not been announced yet. This is a proable list of players who might be boarding the flight to take on the Kiwis.