Shubman Gill has been ruled out of the 1st Test between India and New Zealand due to neck stiffness, making him unavailable for selection. The absence of Gill, a key top-order batsman, comes as a setback for India in the opening Test of the series.
India won the toss and opted to bat first, looking to capitalize on favorable conditions at the start of the match.
Playing XI:
New Zealand:
- Tom Latham (c)
- Devon Conway
- Will Young
- Rachin Ravindra
- Daryl Mitchell
- Tom Blundell (w)
- Glenn Phillips
- Matt Henry
- Tim Southee
- Ajaz Patel
- William O’Rourke
India:
- Rohit Sharma (c)
- Yashasvi Jaiswal
- KL Rahul
- Virat Kohli
- Sarfaraz Khan
- Rishabh Pant (w)
- Ravindra Jadeja
- Ravichandran Ashwin
- Kuldeep Yadav
- Jasprit Bumrah
- Mohammed Siraj
With Gill out, the pressure will be on the remaining top-order batsmen to lay a solid foundation against New Zealand’s bowling attack, led by Tim Southee and Matt Henry.
India will be relying on skipper Rohit Sharma, along with Virat Kohli, to anchor the innings as they look to make an early impact in the series.
