India’s tour of New Zealand: Why the ODI squad announcement was delayed

Suryansh Shedge made an immediate impact after replacing Hardik Pandya in the India A team. (PTI) NEW DELHI: The squads for the five-match ODI series between India and New Zealand and subsequent Tests are likely to be announced next week. The ODI series opener between India and New Zealand will take place on November 4 in Auckland. TimesofIndia.com has learned that the selectors want to evaluate several players in the ongoing unofficial ODI series between India A and Australia A. The selectors plan to keep a replacement squad ready for the final two ODIs as the Test regulars are likely to leave for preparation.The ongoing India A series has given key decision makers an opportunity to see how the ODI contenders fare against quality opposition. Several players from this group are set to make the ODI squad for the final two matches.After dominating the four-day matches, India A lost their first 50-over match by 125 runs. The likes of Sai Sudharsan, Devdutt Padikkal, Prabhsimran Singh and Suryansh Shedge were swept away by 21-year-old quick Mahli Beardman. The West Australian speedster, who was sidelined for seven months after being diagnosed with a stress fracture in his hip, returned with figures of 4 for 23.Only Rajat Patidar (53) put up some fight against Australia’s fast bowlers as India A were bundled out for 149 runs chasing 275.India on Tuesday named their T20I squad for the upcoming tour of New Zealand, with captain Shreyas Iyer continuing to lead a largely unchanged group currently competing against the West Indies. The big addition is Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who returns to the T20I set-up after last representing India in the format in November 2022.Selectors have also named the India A squad to play three multi-day matches against New Zealand A. However, there will be changes to the India A squad as players will be rotated to be ready for the Test series that will have a major say in India’s chances of qualifying for the World Test Championship (WTC) finals.