Finally, after a mouthwatering T20I series, the attention is turning to ODIs, with India and New Zealand set to face each other in a three-match ODI series, starting on Wednesday with the opening clash in Auckland. The series is incredibly important for both teams to experiment, assess their combinations and identify players for the global event. Before this series, both teams were locked in a five-match T20I series, which India won 3-2 after clinching victories in the first three games.

New Zealand, however, had given India a tough fight, winning the fourth and fifth games to end the series on a positive note. Now, with a fruitful end to the T20I series, India will look to carry that momentum into the ODIs as well. New Zealand, on the other hand, will head into the series with a wave of confidence, having shown their strong skills in T20Is. Moreover, India also have unfinished business following their 2-1 ODI series defeat on home soil in January earlier this year. New Zealand, meanwhile, have an impressive record in home bilateral ODIs, having won their last 11 ODI series on home turf. Interestingly, India were the last team to defeat them in a home ODI series back in 2019.

Amid all this, New Zealand will miss the services of some of their bankable players. Rachin Ravindra and Mark Chapman have both been ruled out of the entire ODI series. Chapman is still recovering from a left hamstring injury, while Ravindra needs more time to recover from a right shoulder problem. Worryingly, Devon Conway has been ruled out of the opening game following a concussion. Henry Nicholls has been included for the opening three matches, while Dean Foxcroft will join the group for the remaining two. In form, batter Tim Seifert is also now available for all three ODIs after earlier being included only for the final two games. Apart from these stars, New Zealand would expect Daryl Mitchell, Will Young and Glenn Phillips to take charge in the batting department.

For India, there is an ample amount of firepower in the batting department with the likes of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, captain Shubman Gill, KL Rahul, and Shreyas Iyer. Gill, in particular, has been tremendously impressive, having enjoyed eight fifty-plus scores in 11 innings. The series is also very much indispensable for the veteran duo of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in order to cement their place in the team ahead of the ODI World Cup.

India, however, will continue to be without premier pacer Jasprit Bumrah, with the management preferring his availability for Tests. Even Prasidh Krishna is also out of the series due to a hamstring injury. In their absence, India’s bowling attack will be led by Mohammed Siraj, Gurnoor Brar, Arshdeep Singh and Anshul Kamboj in the pace department. For the spin attack, India will rely on the likes of Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel.

Head-to-head

Matches - 123

IND won - 63

NZ won - 52

Tied - 1

No results - 7

India likely XI: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill (c), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Axar Patel, KL Rahul (wk), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Gurnoor Brar, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Anshul Kamboj

New Zealand likely XI: Tim Seifert, Nick Kelly, Will Young, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Glenn Phillips, Michael Bracewell (c), Kristian Clarke, Kyle Jamieson, Michael Rae, Adithya Ashok