As the curtains draw on an incredible home season for India, it is time to find out how they plan to tackle the New Zealand challenge and strengthen themselves in the World Test Championship table for this cycle.
The more scared team at this moment would be New Zealand, though, as beating India in a home series, that too in the red-ball format, was last done in 2012, and that too by an English team that was unbeatable under any conditions.
New Zealand doesn’t have a lot at stake in the World Test Championship, as they are currently sixth in the standings and have very few chances of moving to the final. However, for the hosts, winning these three matches is extremely crucial. The Border-Gavaskar trophy is going to be competitive, and the men in blue would want to win as many matches as they can before they leave for the Australian shores.
This New Zealand Tour of India 2024 series is going to be all about youngsters, as a lot of New Zealand players will be playing their first-ever test series in India, and a lot of Indian players will be playing a test match against New Zealand for the first time.
The New Zealand tour of India consists only of three test matches, and they would want to get the best out of these three. Let us see how the teams fare out for this upcoming Ind vs. NZ series, do their squad analysis, and predict the winner of the Ind vs. NZ tests.
India vs New Zealand: Schedule
The schedule for the forthcoming New Zealand tour of India is as follows: The three test matches will be played across three cities in India, where the craze for this beautiful sport is as high as it could be.
| Match | Date | Venue |
| 1st Test | October 16, 2024 | Bengaluru |
| 2nd Test | October 24, 2024 | Pune |
| 3rd Test | November 1, 2024 | Mumbai |
India vs New Zealand 2024: Squads
Let us have a look at the squads of both teams and try to make their possible playing 11 which will contest in the first Ind vs. NZ test match.
India Team Preview
India Squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Jasprit Bumrah, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant (wk), Dhruv Jurel, Sarfaraz Khan, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammad Siraj, and Akash Deep
There was a tussle between Bumrah and Gill to be the vice-captain of the team for this series, but with Bumrah winning that battle, it is now clear that he is all set to be the future leader of Team India in the red-ball format.
The squad is almost similar to the one that played in the series against Bangladesh. With Mohammad Shami still unfit, it is now a golden opportunity for Akash Deep to perform the way he did in the last series, and he will be on that flight to Australia for the Border-Gavaskar trophy.
The combination of two spinners and three seamers seems likely in this series where the pitches are not going to do a lot for the bowlers. With the big players on the verge of hanging their boots, this series presents a fabulous opportunity for youngsters such as Jaiswal and Gill to become the face of Indian cricket in the upcoming years.
India Predicted Playing 11:
Rohit Sharma (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant (wk), KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, Akash Deep, and Mohammad Siraj.
New Zealand Team Preview
New Zealand Squad: Tom Latham (c), Tom Blundell (wk), Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Matt Henry, Daryl Mitchell, William O’Rourke, Ajaz Patel, Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Ben Sears, Tim Southee, Kane Williamson, and Will Young
The Black Caps have suffered a huge blow right before the beginning of the series as their main batter, Williamson, has been ruled out of the first test due to an injury. Anyways, it’s a new era in New Zealand cricket as Tom Latham has been appointed as the full-time test captain of the team, replacing Tim Southee.
The three left-handed batters and the two left-arm spinners on the team are going to be the key to their success in this series against a dominant Indian lineup. An exciting young fast bowler, William O’Rourke, is on his first tour to India and has a great chance to showcase his talent in the subcontinent.
If the batters are able to stand against Indian bowling and put runs on the board in this series, the test matches are going to be competitive as the New Zealand bowlers are full of talent and can dismantle the Indian batting lineup.
New Zealand Predicted Playing 11: Tom Latham (c), Devon Conway, Mark Chapman, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Tom Blundell (wk), Ajaz Patel, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, and William O’Rourke.
India vs New Zealand 2024: Pitch Report
The three test matches are going to be played in Bengaluru, Pune, and Mumbai, respectively. We expect batting-friendly and flat pitches in Bengaluru and Mumbai, whereas Pune is anticipated to present a slowish track where the spinners can have a brilliant game.
It will be tough for the batters to get set on these pitches, but once set, they will be eyeing a huge score as the help from the pitch is going to be minimal for the bowlers.
India vs New Zealand: Winner Prediction
With Kane Williamson not being available and experienced bowlers such as Tim Southee being out of form, New Zealand have a mammoth task on their hands as they gear up to face the mighty and in-form Indian team in this series.
Each and every player on this Indian roster is in great form and has contributed to the team’s victory in past matches. Adding the home advantage to this, the men in blue are already miles ahead of the visitors, and it is a no-brainer that they will win this series.
We think it is going to be a clean sweep, but we are not ruling out the Black Caps yet if their batters score well in one inning and the bowlers keep their composure to take 20 wickets, we might see something special happen in this series between India and New Zealand.
India vs New Zealand 2024: Key Players
India
Having scored more than 1000 runs at an average of almost 58 in his last 10 test matches, Yashasvi Jaiswal is going to be a key player for the Indian team in this series. He has been giving the team great starts at a fantastic strike rate, and the same would be expected from him this time around.
With the ball, there is hardly a doubt that Jasprit Bumrah will be a key player for the team or not. Bumrah has been consistently taking wickets for the team regardless of the pitch and the conditions, and he will be the biggest threat for the New Zealand batters in this series.
New Zealand
We expect the youngster, Rachin Ravindra, to have a great series and score a lot of runs in these three test matches. Rachin has been playing cricket in the Indian conditions for a while now, and he is well familiar with these conditions. In the absence of Kane Williamson, Rachin will have added responsibility to his team.
Ajaz Patel, who holds the record for taking all the wickets in an innings against India, is going to be another key player for the visitors if they are to challenge this Indian roster. The left-arm spinner will have a huge role to play, especially on the slow and dry pitch of Pune in the second test match.
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