BENGALURU: The toss of the first Test between India and New Zealand was delayed on Wednesday due to rain at M Chinnaswamy Stadium here on Wednesday.
Heavy showers kept the ground covered ahead of a scheduled 9.30 am (0400 GMT) start time, with rain forecast to interrupt play for the first two days.
Preparations for the first match of the three-match Test series were also hit by the weather, which caused training for both teams to be cancelled on Tuesday.
Rohit Sharma’s in-form India are firm favourites at home and come in fresh from a 2-0 sweep of Bangladesh.
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New Zealand, who will be without injured leading batsman Kane Williamson for at least the first match, lost both Tests in Sri Lanka last month.
Tim Southee stepped down as captain after Sri Lanka swept the series 2-0, with Tom Latham taking full-time charge for the first time.
The second Test between India and New Zealand is scheduled to be played in Pune on October 24 and the third is in Mumbai from November 1.
Squads:
India: Rohit Sharma (capt), Jasprit Bumrah (vice-capt), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Sarfaraz Khan, Rishabh Pant (wk), Dhruv Jurel (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep.
New Zealand: Tom Latham (capt), Tom Blundell, Michael Bracewell (first Test only), Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Matt Henry, Daryl Mitchell, Will O’Rourke, Ajaz Patel, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Ben Sears, Ish Sodhi (second and third Tests only), Tim Southee, Kane Williamson, Will Young
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