Chapman and Ravindra ruled out of New Zealand’s India ODIs as Nicholls returns for Eden Park opener

Why both are out

Chapman hurt his left hamstring in the European T20 league and missed the T20Is. A fresh MRI showed he needs another two weeks of rehabilitation before he is fully fit, NZC said.

Ravindra dislocated his right shoulder at a promotional shoot before the T20Is. He has not recovered enough to field at full capacity, and with a Test series against India later this month, head coach Rob Walter said the team would not take undue risks.

“Everyone knows what an asset Mark and Rachin are to this side so it’s a shame they have to miss this series,” Walter said in the NZC statement.

Nicholls, Seifert and Fisher fill the gaps

Nicholls earned the call with 119 for Canterbury against Wellington in the Ford Trophy, his 13th List A hundred according to NZC. Dean Foxcroft takes the spot for ODIs 4 and 5 once the New Zealand A red-ball series against India A is over.

Tim Seifert and Matt Fisher were first picked only for the last two games. Both now stay for the whole series. Seifert is coming off 93 in the fifth T20I in Hamilton, and he also gives Tom Latham a second wicketkeeping option.

Matt Henry joins the squad in Auckland on Monday and will be assessed. He missed the last three T20Is with a low-grade tear in his right quadriceps, CricTracker reported.

The squad for the first three ODIs

Mitchell Santner (capt), Michael Bracewell, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Matt Fisher, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Tom Latham (wk), Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Glenn Phillips, Tim Seifert (wk), Nathan Smith, Blair Tickner, Will Young.

Phillips is the one India will worry about most. He finished the T20Is with 341 runs, the most in a bilateral T20I series, passing Phil Salt’s 331 against West Indies in 2023, The Daily Star reported.

What happens next

The first ODI is at Eden Park on Wednesday 4 November, where New Zealand made 259 in the fourth T20I. Shubman Gill captains India in the first three games and Shreyas Iyer in the last two, at Mount Maunganui on 13 and 15 November. The Tests follow later in the month, which is why Ravindra’s shoulder is being handled so carefully.

Market watch

• Top New Zealand batter markets lose two names. Conway, Young, Mitchell and Latham carry more of the run-scoring load in the first three games.
• Nicholls arrives in form at domestic level but has not played in the T20Is. Seifert is the in-form option if he gets a game.
• Henry’s fitness is the one to watch for New Zealand’s new-ball attack. If he is not cleared, Duffy, Jamieson, Fisher and Tickner share the seam work.
• Prices for the opener may still move once both XIs are named on Wednesday. Waiting for confirmed teams costs little here.

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