The first day of the opening Test between India and New Zealand at Bengaluru’s M. Chinnaswamy Stadium was washed out due to rain on Wednesday. No play was possible throughout the day.
On day two, the toss will take place at 8:45 AM, and play will begin at 9:15 AM IST, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said in a post on X.
India will be looking to maintain their home dominance as they face New Zealand in a three-match Test series. The hosts have been particularly formidable on home soil, having not lost a Test series at home since their 1-2 defeat to England during the 2012-13 season.
Since then, India has gone on to win 18 consecutive Test series at home and has remained unbeaten in a series for over 4,000 days. They currently sit atop the ICC World Test Championship 2023-25 standings with eight wins, two losses, and one draw from 11 Tests.
New Zealand, on the other hand, are coming off a disappointing 2-0 series whitewash at the hands of Sri Lanka. The Tim Southee-led side narrowly lost the first Test by 63 runs in a thrilling finish, before being soundly beaten by an innings and 154 runs in the second Test. New Zealand currently occupy sixth place in the ICC WTC points table, with three wins and five losses from eight Tests.
India announced a 15-player squad on Friday for the upcoming series against New Zealand, with the first Test scheduled to start on October 16 in Bengaluru. Rohit Sharma will lead the side, while star pacer Jasprit Bumrah has been named vice-captain.
After New Zealand’s defeat to Sri Lanka, Tim Southee stepped down from the captaincy, with Tom Latham set to lead the side for the three Tests against India.
India’s squad for the three Tests against New Zealand: Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Sarfaraz Khan, Rishabh Pant (WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep.
Travelling reserves: Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Mayank Yadav, Prasidh Krishna.
New Zealand’s squad: Tom Latham (C), Tom Blundell (WK), Michael Bracewell (1st Test only), Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Matt Henry, Daryl Mitchell, Will O’Rourke, Ajaz Patel, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Ben Sears, Ish Sodhi (2nd and 3rd Tests only), Tim Southee, Kane Williamson, Will Young.
(Inputs: ANI)
