IND vs NZ 2026: Why is Arshdeep Singh not playing in India vs New Zealand 1st ODI?

Published - 11 Jan 2026, 12:59 IST | Updated - 11 Jan 2026, 13:22 IST

The first-ever One-Day International of 2026 took off at the BCA Stadium, Vadodara, as India (IND) are hosting New Zealand (NZ) for the first match of the three-match series on Sunday, January 11. The Shubman Gill-led side entered the contest without the services of left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh, whereas Kristian Clarke is playing his maiden game for the BlackCaps.

India won the toss and skipper Shubman Gill reiterated his decision of bowling first. The Men in Blue asked the visitors to come out to bat first on a flat surface, which is hosting its first-ever Men's One-Day International. The pitch at the BCA Stadium looks pretty decent to bat on, and with dew likely to kick in during the second innings, Gill said that it would be easier to chase on a wicket like this.

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The Indian captain announced the Playing XI after winning the toss. While Rishabh Pant has been ruled out of the series, the hosts went ahead with a six-man bowling line-up, but without a place for Arshdeep. The team management opted to pick the likes of Mohammed Siraj, Harshit Rana, and Prasidh Krishna for the sake of better combination for pacers, as a result of which, the left-arm seamer had to warm the bench.

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"We will bowl first. Honestly, try different kinds of combinations, you know, see what combination suits us the best for different conditions, obviously when we play in India. Whenever you're bowling second, there's a bit of a challenge with the dew, and so try out what kind of combination suits our condition the best. It looks like a good wicket. Hopefully, I think it'll be a little bit easier to bat on in the second innings with the new coming in, and that was the thought process behind bowling first. I think playing a bit of Vijay Hazare series, everyone is coming after playing some matches, so everyone looks in good form. We've played a lot of cricket together, so you know, the environment is always nice and calm whenever we get together. We are going with six bowlers, with Washi, Jadeja and Kuldeep as the spinners, and Prasidh, Siraj, and Harshit the three pacers."

Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill (captain), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wicketkeeper), Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna

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