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India won the toss and opted to bat first under cloudy skies on the second day of the rain-hit opening test against New Zealand on Thursday, October 17, 2024. The first day's action was called off without a ball being bowled due to rain with more bad weather expected this week. India made two changes to their team, bringing in Sarfaraz Khan for injured batsman Shubman Gill and spinner Kuldeep Yadav for pace bowler Akash Deep.
"The pitch has been under the covers for a couple of days and we do understand it will be sticky to start with," India skipper Rohit Sharma said. "Keeping that in mind, we wanted to put runs on the board. It's a tricky one because you lose the entire day and have four days to play.
A lot can happen over the four days as well and you want to get the result as much as possible." New Zealand, under new permanent captain Tom Latham, are looking to win their first match against India since 1988. The tourists are without batting anchor Kane Williamson for the match at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.
They face a daunting task against India, who have won 18 consecutive series on home soil since a 2-1 defeat by England in 2012. The Black Caps went with three seam bowlers in Tim Southee, William O'Rourke, and Matt Henry, as they looked to make the most of early overcast conditions. Published - October 17, 2024 09:31 am IST Copy link Email Facebook Twitter Telegram LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit cricket / sport / Test cricket / ICC Test Championship.
