IND vs NZ 1st T20I: No Iyer? Kishan at 3. Check India’s predicted playing XI

India and New Zealand will square off in the first of the five T20Is starting on Wednesday (Jan 21) in Nagpur. Since conceding the home ODI series to the Kiwis for the first time, the hosts are more motivated than ever to compensate for that loss. Although both teams have their best players back for this marquee series, Team India could have some headaches surrounding team selection. Check out what Team India’s XI for the opener could look like.

No Shreyas Iyer for opener?

Returning to the T20I side, although as an injury replacement for Tilak Varma, Shreyas Iyer might have to wait a tad extra for his chance, as T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav confirmed in-form Ishan Kishan at number three for the first game. Coming off a brilliant white-ball domestic run, the left-handed batter was a surprise inclusion to the side for the New Zealand T20Is and the World Cup, offering his captain and the selectors more options to pick from.

"Ishan will play third [No. 3]. Because [he's] in our World Cup team, we have picked him first. So, it's his responsibility, and he has to play. He has been doing well in domestic cricket. He hasn't played for the Indian team for 1-1.5 years. We have picked him in the World Cup team, and he deserves to play,” India’s T20I captain SKY said of Kishan’s batting position.

Kishan's rich vein of form would benefit India, besides providing them with a back-up gloveman option (to Sanju Samson). The flashy batter hit the right notes during the recently concluded SMAT for Jharkhand, smashing 517 runs in 10 matches, including two hundreds and as many fifties; he even whacked a match-winning hundred in the finale, helping his team lift the trophy for the first time. Ishan's last appearance for India, however, came more than two years ago (Nov 2023) during the home T20I series against Australia.

Barring Kishan’s inclusion, India’s XI could look similar to what they fielded against South Africa late last year, with Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson opening the innings and captain SKY walking out at number four. The hosts could have two all-rounders in Shivam Dube and Hardik Pandya batting at five and six, respectively, while also recalling T20 specialist Rinku Singh at number seven.

Vice-captain Axar Patel makes a perfect number eight for India, with the defending world champions contemplating picking between Kuldeep Yadav and in-form Varun Chakarvarthy as the specialist spinner. Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh would likely be the two pacers for the series opener.

Team India’s predicted XI for 1st T20I against NZ –

Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel/Kuldeep Yadav, Varun CV, Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh