Santner leads a New Zealand ODI squad for India split in two

The New Zealand ODI squad for next month's series against India will change shape halfway through. Mitchell Santner captains both halves. Fourteen players are named for the first three matches. Seven more arrive for the fourth and fifth. Twenty-one are involved in all. The series starts on November 4 at Eden Park.

Rachin Ravindra returns after a shoulder injury kept him out of the T20I leg. Finn Allen, Lockie Ferguson and Tim Seifert come back for the last two games. Zak Foulkes, Will O'Rourke and Ben Sears were not considered. All three are rehabilitating.

Two squads, one series

The handover happens after the third ODI. Senior players then travel to Wellington. The two-Test series begins there on November 19.

• ODIs one to three: Santner (captain), Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Nathan Smith, Blair Tickner, Will Young
• ODIs four and five: Santner (captain), Finn Allen, Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Kristian Clarke, Jacob Duffy, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Fisher, Mitch Hay, Nick Kelly, Tim Seifert, Blair Tickner, Will Young

Six players appear in both groups. Latham keeps wicket for the first three games. Hay and Seifert share the role after that. The Test squad of 14 is due in early November.

Walter on testing the depth

Head coach Rob Walter said that "bringing in seven players for the final ODIs allows us to test our depth". He described Ferguson, Allen and Seifert as proven match winners. Walter also pointed to the World Test Championship. Every Test carries championship points, he said, which is why the senior group leaves early.

Allen and Ferguson have been out of the ODI side since 2023. Both come in for games four and five. The series may be decided by then. Seifert returns as a second wicketkeeping option alongside Hay.

Three seamers still rehabilitating

Foulkes has a hip flexor problem. O'Rourke has a calf. Sears has an ankle. That is three quicker options gone at once. Duffy and Tickner are the only seamers in both groups. Henry and Jamieson cover the first three games. Clarke and Fisher take the last two.

The spread looks deliberate. No fast bowler is down for all five matches. The two named across the series are the ones carrying the lightest Test workload.

Three formats in six weeks

India's tour runs five T20Is from October 22. Then the five ODIs from November 4. Then two Tests from November 19. That is twelve internationals for the host side inside six weeks. The split is what makes it possible without picking the same fourteen players for all of it.

The 2027 World Cup is the other date on the board. Walter called it about a year away. He described the ODIs as valuable preparation for it. Twenty-one players across five matches against India is a wider sample than one squad would give.