With just two ODIs remaining in the NZ vs IND series, the focus will shift to the five-day format, starting on 19th November 2026. Former Team India head coach Ravi Shastri has named Anshul Kamboj as the workhorse of the side before the two-Test series. The 25-year-old picked up four wickets in the first two matches and was also named the player of the Match for his exploits during the first ODI in Auckland. 

The Chennai Super Kings star has played just one Test against England in Manchester, claiming just one wicket and scoring a duck. Speaking to Sony Sports Network, Shastri said: “Anshul can bat as well, so that comes in handy."

“In the middle overs of a Test match or an ODI game, you need to have bowlers with the ability to take wickets. In countries like New Zealand, if we speak about Test cricket, youneed workhorses, and Kamboj can just be that. He can bowl 15 overs from one end and hold it up when the going gets tough. The conditions are windy and gloomy in New Zealand," he added.

“Anshul is a guy who has bowled plenty of overs in domestic cricket for Haryana across formats. I think he will be useful in these conditions, and on occasions you have to choose players who can be horses for courses. He is a bowler who hits the ball hard and is accurate. The reason India is 2-0 up in the ODI series is because of bowlers like him and Gurnoor. They have taken wickets in the middle overs when the tendency has been to go back to spin during that phase.”

India squad for final two ODIs vs NZ

Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Tilak Varma, Naman Dhir, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Axar Patel, Ishan Kishan, Kumar Kushagra, Auqib Nabi, Gurnoor Brar, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj, Yash Thakur, and Kuldeep Yadav. 

India squad for Test series vs NZ

Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Devdutt Padikkal, Sai Sudharsan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Anshul Kamboj, Washington Sundar, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Dhruv Jurel, Jasprit Bumrah, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Kuldeep Yadav, and Mohammed Siraj.