The team for India’s two-match Test series against New Zealand, which starts on November 19, has been revealed. Jasprit Bumrah returns to the team after missing the series, and the lineup is almost the same as the one that played Sri Lanka in its previous assignment. Anshul Kamboj and Akash Deep, who will both make their first appearances since the England series if they play, are two additional seamers whom the team management has chosen to bring in.
The most important choice made for this team is Bumrah’s return. The speed leader last made an appearance during India’s tour of South Africa in late 2025, and he has not played in a single Test since. The Jammu and Kashmir seamer Auqib Nabi, who filled in for Bumrah during the Sri Lanka Tests, has not been kept on for this assignment.
Vice-captain Rishabh Pant’s involvement is pending fitness clearance. Pant missed Delhi’s Ranji Trophy opening match after suffering an injury while leading the Rest of India in the Irani Cup. Sarfaraz Khan is replaced in the squad by B. Sai Sudharsan, who was injured during the Sri Lanka series.
KL Rahul is vice-captain, and Shubman Gill remains captain. Four days following the fifth and final ODI at Mount Maunganui on November 15, the first Test takes place at Cello Basin Reserve in Wellington from November 19 to 23. The second Test will take place from November 27 to December 1, 2026, at Christchurch’s Hagley Oval. The BCCI has selected a different roster for the tour’s last two ODIs; the only players shared by both teams are Nitish Kumar Reddy, Mohammed Siraj, and Kuldeep Yadav.
India Squad for New Zealand Tests 2026:
Dhruv Jurel (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Anshul Kamboj, Jasprit Bumrah, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Sai Sudharsan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Shubman Gill (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul (VC), Devdutt Padikkal, and Rishabh Pant (WK)* [subject to fitness clearance].
