New Zealand veterans Colin de Grandhomme and Trent Boult have opted to not visit India for the Test match series. The two players cited “bubble fatigue” as the reason for not participating in the series. Kane Williamson will continue to lead the team in the series and New Zealand has gone on with five spinners, a move which makes considering the slow nature of Indian pitches.
New Zealand will have three specialist spinners in Mitchell Santner, Ajaz Patel, and William Somerville. Meanwhile, the two other spinners are the all-rounders Rachin Ravindra and Glen Phillips. The Test series will start on 25 November and end on December 7.
Trent has already spent the best part of 60 days in hard managed isolation this year, while Colin had been on the road since May until recently returning home from Pakistan. From talking to both players it was clear the best option for them was to be left out of this Test tour and for them to instead focus on being ready for the New Zealand home summer.
Gary Stead, Coach, New Zealand Cricket