IND vs NZ 2nd ODI preview: India weighs combinations and personnel while it aims to seal series win

The Men’s T20 World Cup is just 25 days away. And the next ODI assignment that will truly shift Indian men’s cricket’s focus towards the 2027 ODI World Cup is nearly five months away. With little at stake, the least India can do in the remaining two ODIs against New Zealand — starting with the second match here on a festive day — is offer game-time to as many reserves as possible.

It will therefore be interesting to see whether Nitish Kumar Reddy, who replaces the injured Washington Sundar, is the only forced change or whether the team management opts for a broader rotation policy across departments. The Indian think-tank was already considering giving Nitish a rare ODI outing; Washington’s side strain has all but sealed Nitish’s third ODI cap.

Ahead of the series opener, captain Shubman Gill had indicated that the pace-bowling group would be rotated. Rather than first sealing the series, it will be interesting to see if Arshdeep Singh is handed an opportunity at the expense of Prasidh Krishna. Both Nitish and Arshdeep had extended spells during India’s optional floodlit net session along with Ayush Badoni who has been called up as Washington’s replacement.

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There is also the question of whether head coach Gautam Gambhir is inclined to extend rotation to the top three. With Rohit Sharma, Gill and Virat Kohli forming a settled top order, Yashasvi Jaiswal has had to warm the bench. Gambhir himself faced a similar scenario as a player when he, Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag were rotated as openers during the 2012 tri-series in Australia.

It remains to be seen if India experiments with top-order rotation — if not here, then in Indore — to hand Jaiswal the occasional opportunity. While Jaiswal took it easy, Dhruv Jurel – the reserve keeper-batter had a long vigil in the nets on Tuesday. That said, few batters would willingly sit out a match on what promises to be a belter at the Niranjan Shah Stadium.

While India weigh combinations and personnel, New Zealand will hope to once again punch above their weight. Despite fielding a largely inexperienced bowling unit, the Black Caps pushed India to the brink in the series opener.

Captain Michael Bracewell’s side will be keen to find answers to the Kohli question. The maestro is in imperious form, having registered five consecutive 50-plus scores — including two hundreds — across his last few ODI outings.

Published on Jan 13, 2026