Vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane will lead India in the first Test against New Zealand in Kanpur from November 25, before regular skipper Virat Kohli takes over from the second Test in Mumbai.
Newly appointed T20 captain and regular opener Rohit Sharma, wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant and pacers Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami have been rested as per BCCI’s workload management policy.
“Virat Kohli will join the squad for the second Test and lead the team,” BCCI secretary Jay Shah said in a statement.
Middle-order batsman Shreyas Iyer made a return to the Test team along with off-spinner Jayant Yadav.
A three-match T20 series will be played before the Test series.
India’s Test Team: Ajinkya Rahane (Captain), KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara (Vice-Captain), Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Wriddhiman Saha (WK), KS Bharat (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Axar Patel, Jayant Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Mohammad Siraj, Famous Krishna.
,