Star India batter Shreyas Iyer is all set to make a comeback into international cricket after two months, after he was named in India’s playing XI for the first ODI against New Zealand on Sunday, January 11, in Vadodara.
Iyer suffered a massive injury during the ODI series against Australia and had a lengthy break from cricket, only to return for the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy.
Meanwhile, star pacer Arshdeep Singh, who featured in the final ODI against South Africa last month, didn’t find a place in the XI, with Mohammed Siraj making a comeback since November.
🚨 Toss Update 🚨 #TeamIndia elect to bowl in the 1st ODI in Vadodara
Updates ▶️ https://t.co/OcIPHEpvjr#INDvNZ | @IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/vR8u8TcbH5
— BCCI (@BCCI) January 11, 2026
India’s ODI skipper Shubman Gill won the toss and opted to field first, announcing that his team are going in with three spinners and as many pacers.
“We want to try different combinations and see how that works. Surface looks good, hope it will be easier to bat with the dew coming in in the second innings. Playing a bit of Vijay Hazare gives players some experience,” Gill said while speaking at the toss.
“Six bowlers – Washy, Kuldeep, Jadeja as spinners,” Gill added.
New Zealand skipper Michael Bracewell said that he, too, would have liked to field first.
“We would have bowled first. We have been here for a while, gotten used to the conditions. Great facilities here. Big series for here. Proud to play for NZ every time. Playing in these conditions before the WC is a huge advantage,” Bracewell said.
“Great to play in front of big crowds. Looks like a decent wicket, maybe a bit lower than wickets in NZ. We have got Kristian Clarke, Adi Ashok,” Bracewell added.
Here are your playing XIs:
India Playing XI: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill(c), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul(w), Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna
New Zealand Playing XI: Devon Conway, Henry Nicholls, Will Young, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Hay(w), Michael Bracewell(c), Zakary Foulkes, Kristian Clarke, Kyle Jamieson, Adithya Ashok
