Pant out as India wins toss and opts to field in 1st ODI against New Zealand

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VADODARA, India (AP) — India captain Shubman Gill won the coin toss and opted to field first against New Zealand in the first one-day international cricket match on Sunday.

The Baroda Cricket Association is hosting its first-ever men’s ODI. Rajkot (Jan. 14) and Indore (Jan. 18) will host the second and third games of this three-match series.

Gill returned to the helm after missing the ODI series against South Africa in December.

India has opted for six bowlers – three pacers and two spin all-rounders along with wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav.

Star batters Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli also return to the international fold, after playing domestic List-A cricket.

Shreyas Iyer has recovered from a spleen injury sustained against Australia in October. He returns to the side after a two-month hiatus and will bat at number four.

Wicketkeeper batter Rishabh Pant has been ruled out of the series with an abdominal strain he sustained whilst playing for Delhi in domestic List-A cricket. Dhruv Jurel has been called up as his replacement.

For New Zealand, medium pacer Kristian Clarker makes his ODI debut, while 23-year-old wrist spinner Adithya Ashok is its lead spin bowler.

The Black Caps come into this series on the back of some good form – not losing a single ODI in 2025.

The pitch for the first-ever international game at the BCA Stadium should suit batters. It is a black soil pitch which could exhibit variable bounce through the day. Evening dew will aid the chasing side.

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Line ups:

New Zealand: Devon Conway, Henry Nicholls, Will Young, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Hay, Michael Bracewell (captain), Zakary Foulkes, Kristian Clarke, Kyle Jamieson, Adithya Ashok.

India: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna.

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AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket