An extended 19-man New Zealand A (NZ A) squad featuring 11 BLACKCAPS has been named to play three four-day matches against India A starting tomorrow at Bert Sutcliffe Oval at Lincoln University.
The A series runs concurrently with the BLACKCAPS v India white-ball series and New Zealand’s domestic 50-over competition, meaning thirteen players will be assembled for each match and the remaining squad members will be involved in Ford Trophy.
NZ A will get the chance to face off against some of India’s best red-ball talents in likes of Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, and Washington Sundar who have been named in India’s squad for the Hero VIDA Test series Powered by Ai+ Nova Smartphone against the BLACKCAPS starting November 19.
Canterbury’s Rhys Mariu will captain games one and two, while captaincy for the third match will be decided in due course.
The BLACKCAPS’ newest centrally contracted player Nick Kelly is in line to play game three, with fellow capped New Zealand internationals Adi Ashok, Kristian Clarke, Dean Foxcroft, Matt Fisher, Mitch Hay, Jayden Lennox, Ben Lister, Henry Nicholls, and Tim Robinson in line to feature.
New Zealand Cricket Head of High Performance Development Pete Sanford said the matches present a great chance to continue to develop New Zealand’s stocks.
"We're really looking forward to hosting India A," said Sanford.
"They've announced a very strong line up which poses a great opportunity for growth as players to test their strengths against international class.
"There's a huge buzz around having India on our shores and I know the squad are raring to get their domestic summer underway.”
New Zealand A v India A Four Day squads
1st Match
Rhys Mariu (C)
Matt Boyle
Max Chu
Kristian Clarke
Dean Foxcroft
Zak Gibson
Mitch Hay (WK)
Curtis Heaphy
Simon Keene
Jayden Lennox
Jarrod McKay
Tim Robinson
Fraser Sheat
2nd Match
Rhys Mariu (C)
Matt Boyle
Kristian Clarke
Matt Fisher
Dean Foxcroft
Zak Gibson
Mitch Hay (WK)
Curtis Heaphy
Simon Keene
Jayden Lennox
Jarrod McKay
Tim Robinson
Fraser Sheat
3rd Match
Adi Ashok
Matt Boyle
Max Chu (WK)
Dean Foxcroft
Curtis Heaphy
Simon Keene
Nick Kelly
Ben Lister
Rhys Mariu
Jarrod McKay
Cam Paul
Henry Nicholls
Fraser Sheat
Canterbury allrounder Cam Paul is in line for his first NZ A appearance after missing the previous tour due to injury.
In the five first class matches of Paul’s career, the 21-year-old boasts a first-class bowling average of just under 22 and has two five-wicket-hauls.
Paul said the chance to play against such high-quality opposition was exciting.
“You always want to test yourself against the best and potentially playing against some of those guys is a huge opportunity.
“I was gutted to just miss out on the last tour, so I’m fizzed to be part of the squad and take that next step up.”
Matches will be live streamed in New Zealand on NZC YouTube, with live scoring at nzc.nz.
NZC’s broadcast partner, Sony Pictures Networks India, will showcase India A’s tour of New Zealand, streaming all three four-day matches against NZ A live and exclusively on Sony LIV in India, with the first two also telecast live on Sony Sports Ten 1 channels.
Schedule - New Zealand A Men v India A Men
1st Match - Bert Sutcliffe Oval, Lincoln University
October 24-27
2nd Match - Hagley Oval, Christchurch
October 31-November 3
3rd Match - Bert Sutcliffe Oval, Lincoln University
November 7-10