Devon Conway, Rachin Ravindra In Race Against Time As New Zealand Announce Squad For India Test Series

New Zealand have included Devon Conway, Rachin Ravindra and Tom Blundell in their squad for the upcoming two-Test series against India, despite all three players recovering from injuries. The Tom Latham-led side will begin its campaign in Wellington on November 19.

The three players are still working towards full fitness, but New Zealand Cricket (NZC) remains hopeful that they will be available for the opening Test.

Conway, Ravindra and Blundell Race Against Time To Get Fit

Conway picked up a concussion while fielding during a training session ahead of the ongoing ODI series against India. Ravindra, meanwhile, dislocated his right shoulder during a promotional shoot in Auckland before the T20I series.

Blundell is also recovering from a quadriceps injury. The wicketkeeper-batter has played 48 Tests so far and is closing in on his 50th appearance for New Zealand. He is in line to reach the milestone during the series, with the third Test scheduled to take place at Hagley Oval in Christchurch.

Providing an update on the trio, NZC said: “Tom Blundell (quadricep), Devon Conway (concussion), and Rachin Ravindra (shoulder), are working through their respective injuries and aiming to be available for the first Test.”

New Zealand Make Few Changes To England Tour Squad

New Zealand have largely retained the group that travelled to England earlier this year. However, Ben Sears, Zak Foulkes and Will O’Rourke have been left out due to their respective fitness concerns.

Sears is recovering from an ankle injury, Foulkes is dealing with a hip problem, while O’Rourke is currently following a return-to-play programme. Jacob Duffy has been added to the squad.

The BlackCaps enjoyed a memorable run in England, where they registered a historic Test series victory. It was England’s first home defeat in a Test series involving three or more matches in 14 years.

Head coach Rob Walter will be supported by bowling coach Jacob Oram, outgoing batting coach Luke Ronchi and new batting coach BJ Watling. Watling will officially begin his role on November 16.

Rob Walter Looks Forward To India Test Series

Walter is looking forward to the team returning to home conditions after a successful campaign in England. He also believes the support of home fans will play an important role during the series.

“The squad is largely consistent with the team that competed in England earlier this year, so it’ll be great to be back together to try and recreate some of that success on home soil.

“We’ve experienced great crowds so far during the white-ball series and we’re really looking forward to having that support during the Tests,” Walter said.

The New Zealand head coach also highlighted the importance of the upcoming matches in the context of the World Test Championship (WTC).

“There are ten Tests scheduled between now and March, so there’s no shortage of action for red-ball fans. Valuable Championship points are on the line, of course, but our focus remains on playing our best cricket against a high-quality team like India,” he added.

New Zealand are currently second in the WTC standings, behind South Africa. India occupy fourth place, with Australia sitting between the two sides in third.

India vs New Zealand Test series schedule

New Zealand squad

Tom Latham (c), Tom Blundell, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Nathan Smith, Blair Tickner, Will Young.

India’s Test squad

Shubman Gill [C], Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul [VC], Devdutt Padikkal, Rishabh Pant [WK]*, Dhruv Jurel [WK], Ravindra Jadeja, Anshul Kamboj, Jasprit Bumrah, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Sai Sudharsan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj