India Open New Zealand T20I Tour In Christchurch

India play the first T20I against New Zealand at Hagley Oval in Christchurch on Thursday, facing challenging local conditions with seam movement and extra bounce.

Captain Shreyas Iyer confirmed that Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma will open the batting, keeping 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi out of the starting lineup for now.

Seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumar is set to make his long-awaited international return after a four-year gap, slotting straight into the eleven following strong IPL seasons.