New Zealand lose Conway to concussion on the eve of the first India ODI at Eden Park

Conway out, Henry cleared

Henry passed his concussion tests and stays in contention, though NZC said both players “will continue to be monitored” and that their involvement in the rest of the series would be updated later. The fast bowler has only just returned from a low-grade right quadriceps tear that kept him out of the last three T20Is.

Mitchell Santner did not hide who comes in. Tim Seifert is “the back-up batter in our squad”, the captain said, and it would “probably be a direct swap”. Seifert finished the T20I series with 93 in Hamilton, and Henry Nicholls, called in when Chapman and Ravindra were ruled out, is also in the squad.

India’s top three back together

Shubman Gill captains the first three ODIs in Auckland before leaving to prepare for the Tests, with Shreyas Iyer taking over for the last two at Mount Maunganui on 13 and 15 November, according to the BCCI’s split ODI squads. Jasprit Bumrah is rested from the ODIs and Ravindra Jadeja is not in the one-day squads.

Without Bumrah, India’s new-ball attack is the weaker half of their side on paper, and Eden Park is an unforgiving place to be a little short or a little full.

New Zealand have the recent edge

The overall record favours India, 63 wins to New Zealand’s 52 in 123 ODIs, with a tie and seven no-results. The recent one does not. New Zealand won the three-match series in India in January 2-1, losing in Vadodara and then winning in Rajkot by seven wickets and in Indore by 41 runs, and they passed 280 in all three games.

India’s last ODI at Eden Park, in November 2022, ended in a seven-wicket defeat after Tom Latham’s unbeaten 145. And last week at the same ground, New Zealand made 259 for 7 in the fourth T20I, their highest T20I total, and won by 87 runs.

Eden Park conditions and weather

The straight boundaries at Eden Park are among the shortest in international cricket, yet the average first-innings ODI score at the ground is only 222 across its long history. Previews in India expect the ODI pitch to be less flat than the T20I strips, with a little for the seamers.

Outlook, citing AccuWeather, put the chance of rain in Auckland at 56% for the morning, with the afternoon and evening expected to be clear. The match starts at 3pm local time, 7:30am IST.

What happens next

Games two and three are also in Auckland, before the series moves to Mount Maunganui. NZC will update on Conway and Henry for the second ODI. The two-Test series follows the ODIs.

Market watch

• Conway’s absence takes a first-choice opener out of New Zealand’s top order, and Seifert’s 93 in Hamilton came in T20 cricket, not the longer format.
• Henry’s fitness is the team-news item to wait for at the toss. A New Zealand attack without him leans heavily on Jacob Duffy, who took four wickets in the fourth T20I here.
• Short straight boundaries reward hitting down the ground, which suits Rohit’s game in the powerplay.
• A wet morning can leave early movement for the side bowling first; both captains are likely to look at chasing.

For more, see our cricket predictions, the grounds guide in our stadiums section and the fixtures in our match centre.

Top image: Photo: TimBray / CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons