• Home
  • Cricket News
  • Bcci To Pick India Odi Squad For New Zealand Series On This Date Shubman Gill To Return

BCCI to pick India ODI squad for New Zealand series on 'this' date; Shubman Gill to return

Debashis Sarangi

Indian players in action [Source: AFP]Indian players in action [Source: AFP]

According to the latest reports, the BCCI will pick India's ODI squad for the upcoming series against New Zealand on Saturday, January 3. After registering a clinical victory over South Africa, India are gearing up to face New Zealand in three ODIs and five T20Is at home this month. While India's T20 World Cup squad is the same as the team that will face the BlackCaps in the five T20Is, the ODI team will be announced on January 3, the Times of India reported. 

BCCI to announce IND ODI squad for NZ series on January 3

The three-match ODI series against New Zealand will give the Indian players a golden opportunity to fine-tune their 50-over game as they start preparing for the 2027 World Cup. As revealed by TOI, the BCCI selection committee chief Ajit Agarkar will have an online meeting with the other members of the panel to finalise India's ODI squad for the New Zealand series on January 3. 

The report also states that the Indian players will arrive in Vadodara on January 7, with the ODI series set to commence four days later on the eleventh. 

Shubman Gill to be back as Indian ODI captain vs New Zealand

India's Test and ODI captain Shubman Gill was ruled out of the South Africa series due to a neck injury. Gill could bat only two deliveries in the Test series opener at the Eden Gardens before the neck injury sidelined him from the remainder of the tour. 

However, as per the TOI report, Shubman Gill is all set to be back as the Indian ODI captain in the New Zealand home series. Considering he was recently dropped from India's T20 World Cup squad, Gill will be desperate to bounce back and silence his doubters in the three-match series. 

Despite struggling in T20I cricket, Gill has a stellar record in ODIs, having slammed 2818 runs at an average of 56.4 and a strike rate of 99.2. The stylish right-hander has amassed eight ODI tons, including a double century, and will open the batting with the in-form Rohit Sharma against the BlackCaps. 

Shreyas Iyer's ODI comeback unlikely vs New Zealand

While Shubman Gill's return is an encouraging sign for the Indian team, experienced batter Shreyas Iyer's absence could haunt the hosts against New Zealand. 

Iyer sustained a nasty spleen injury during India's Australia tour earlier this year and hasn't been declared fully fit as of yet. 

The TOI report revealed that Shreyas Iyer will stay at the BCCI Centre of Excellence facility in Bengaluru and undergo a week of further rehabilitation, only after which a final decision on his cricketing comeback will be taken. In his absence, Ruturaj Gaikwad will likely continue as India's number four batter. 

New Zealand's tour of India starts on January 11, with both teams facing off in the first ODI in Vadodara. The remaining two ODIs will be played in Rajkot and Indore before the caravan chronologically shifts to Nagpur, Raipur, Guwahati, Visakhapatnam, and Thiruvananthapuram for the five T20Is.