Correspondent, 16 October: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has officially revealed the Test and One-Day International (ODI) squads for India's upcoming 2026 tour of New Zealand. The tour will feature a five-match ODI series alongside a single Test match. In a move addressing player workload management, the BCCI has opted to name two distinct teams for the ODI leg of the tour.
Shubman Gill has been appointed to lead the side for the first three ODIs, with Shreyas Iyer serving as his deputy. The leadership dynamics will shift for the final two ODIs, where Iyer will assume the captaincy. Wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan has been entrusted with the vice-captaincy for these closing matches, a new responsibility that could mark a major milestone in his international career.
A major surprise in the squad announcement was the continued exclusion of veteran pacers Mohammed Shami and Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Following Ajit Agarkar's departure from the chief selector position, there were expectations that the experienced duo would make a comeback. Nevertheless, both bowlers have once again been ignored for both the ODI and Test setups.
The selection committee has clearly favored youth over experience in their bowling choices. The fast bowling unit features Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, and Arshdeep Singh, alongside fresh additions Anshul Kamboj and Gurnoor Brar. Meanwhile, Jasprit Bumrah has been selected exclusively for the one-off Test match.
The ODI roster further provides a platform for emerging talents such as Naman Dhir, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Auqib Nabi, Yash Thakur, and Kumar Kushagra. For the red-ball format, Shubman Gill has been named Test captain, with KL Rahul taking the vice-captaincy. The Test squad also features Yashasvi Jaiswal, Devdutt Padikkal, Rishabh Pant, Dhruv Jurel, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, and Kuldeep Yadav.
India squad for the first three ODIs: Shubman Gill (captain), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (vice-captain), KL Rahul (wicketkeeper), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Naman Dhir, Anshul Kamboj, Gurnoor Brar, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Arshdeep Singh, Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper), Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, and Kuldeep Yadav.
India squad for the last two ODIs: Shreyas Iyer (captain), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper/vice-captain), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Naman Dhir, Auqib Nabi, Gurnoor Brar, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Arshdeep Singh, Kumar Kushagra (wicketkeeper), Mohammed Siraj, Yash Thakur, and Kuldeep Yadav.
