The Indian team's New Zealand tour will begin from October 22, starting with a series of five T-20 matches. The names of the players for this format had already been announced, but now the picture of ODI and Test matches has also become clear. The senior men's selection committee announced three different teams for these two formats on 16 October. One team has been selected for the first three matches of the five-match ODI series, while different players have been included for the last two matches.
The small difference between the ODI and Test series is being considered as an important reason behind this. Relatively few changes have been made in the Test team. The selectors have also included some players recovering from injuries in the team, but their playing field will open only after proving their fitness.
Shubman Gill will take command in the opening ODI
Shubman Gill will captain the Indian team in the first three matches of the ODI series against New Zealand starting on November 4. Experienced players like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul have also got a place in the starting team. Shreyas Iyer will play the role of vice-captain in this phase. The team also includes players like Ruturaj Gaikwad, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Akshar Patel, Naman Dheer, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammad Siraj and Kuldeep Yadav. Prasidh Krishna has been selected with the condition of fitness. Fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah has not been included in the ODI squad so that his workload can be managed keeping the Test series in mind.
🚨 News 🚨 #TeamIndia's ODI and Test squads for New Zealand tour announced 📝 Captain Shubman Gill will lead the side for the first 3️⃣ ODIs, before Shreyas Iyer takes charge for the last 2️⃣ matches. More details ▶️ #NZvIND https://t.co/3ckm7ixgEN
— BCCI (@BCCI) October 16, 2026
Shreyas Iyer captain, Ishan vice captain in last two ODIs
Shreyas Iyer has been given the captaincy for the fourth and fifth matches of the ODI series. Ishan Kishan will be the vice-captain during this period and can also perform the responsibility of wicketkeeper. This team includes names like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Tilak Verma, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Akshar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav. Young wicketkeeper-batsman Kumar Kushagra has got a place in the Indian ODI team for the first time.
His selection can be considered an important opportunity to move forward in domestic cricket. Aaqib Nabi and Yash Thakur have also been included in this team, while some players from the team of the first three matches are not in it. With this division of the teams, the selectors have tried to create coordination between the different matches and further Test preparations.
Akash Deep returns to the test team
Shubman Gill will be the captain and KL Rahul will be the vice-captain for the Test series against New Zealand scheduled from November 19. Rishabh Pant has been selected as the wicketkeeper, but his availability will depend on fitness. Dhruv Jurel has also been kept as the wicketkeeping option. Fast bowler Akash Deep has returned to the Test team after almost a year. After being out due to injury, he returned to the field through the Irani Cup and Ranji Trophy matches. Anshul Kamboj has also got a place in the test team. Along with him, Jasprit Bumrah, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj and Kuldeep Yadav will be part of the bowling department.
Batting and all-round options also included in the test team
Batsmen like Yashasvi Jaiswal, Devdutt Padikkal, Sai Sudarshan and KL Rahul have been selected in the Test team. Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar and Nitish Kumar Reddy give all-round options to the team. Now the Indian team will be faced with the challenge of deciding the combinations in different formats and maintaining the fitness of the players. Gill's captaincy in the opening ODI, Iyer's responsibility in the last two matches and Akash Deep's return to the Test team will be the major aspects of this tour. At the same time, cricket fans will also keep an eye on the performance of Kumar Kushagra, who joined the ODI team for the first time.