India Likely To Play 3 Pacers In 1st Test Against New Zealand - Report

After whitewashing Bangladesh in Test and ODI series, the Indian men’s cricket team will face New Zealand in a three-match Test series. The first Test of the home series against the Kiwis is scheduled to take place at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, and it will start on Wednesday (October 16). After winning the last six Tests, India is high on confidence, and under Rohit Sharma’s leadership, it will be eager to maintain the winning run against the Black Caps, which are coming into the series after losing the last assignment against Sri Lanka in September 2024.

According to a report in news agency PTI on Monday, the Indian team might consider playing three pacers in the first Test against New Zealand.

There is a fair smattering of grass at Chinnaswamy track, and keeping in mind the five-match Test tour of Australia next month as well, where fast bowlers will have to shoulder the bulk of bowling, the hosts might persist with the trio of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, and Akash Deep against the Kiwis.

The weather prediction for the next few days in Benglauru is also for gloomy hours, which strengthens the case of going in with three quicks.

However, India’s head coach, Gautam Gambhir, has kept the door open for all possibilities by saying that the combination will depend on the conditions, the opposition, and the wicket.

“It (combination) depends on conditions, wicket, and opposition. The best part about this dressing room is that we’ve got so many high-quality players, and we can select any of them. We know they can do the job for us. That is what is called the depth,” Gambhir told reporters on Monday during India’s press conference.

“We’ll have a look at the wicket tomorrow (Tuesday). We’ll have a chat and see what is the best combination to do the job at the Chinnaswamy Stadium,” he added.

During the two-match Test tour of Sri Lanka last month, Kiwi batters struggled against spinners, and India has also included as many as four quality spinners in the 15-member squad, which are more than capable of making life difficult for Kiwi batters.

When asked about the possibility of including Kuldeep Yadav or Axar Patel in playing XI for the series opener, Gambhir said, “Obviously we’ve got a lot of quality, not only Kuldeep Yadav, but we’ve got a lot of other quality bowlers in the squad. I’ve said it before as well that we don’t leave anyone out. We only select the playing 11 who can do the job for us.”