IND vs. NZ, 1st Test Day 1 live: The rain is getting heavier

OHH HOOO!!! Another bad news comes as the rain has become heavier in Bengaluru. There are signs of clear weather and the players are in the locker room. The ground is covered and officials are anxiously waiting for the rain to stop. This game will be crucial for the final of the World Test Championship.

IND vs NZ, 1st Test Day 1 Live: Deadly Ashwin-Jadeja duo

India have few concerns but New Zealand's problems in the batting and bowling departments are more pronounced. Their batsmen have had major problems against the Sri Lankan spinners recently while losing an away series 0-2 and here they have to overcome two modern greats in Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja. They took a total of 20 wickets against Bangladesh and with the Chinnaswamy Stadium pitch expected to offer some support to the spinners, the veterans couldn't wait to have a ball here.

IND vs NZ, 1st Test Day 1 live: Tough fight against Kiwis

New Zealand are playing without their star batter Kane Williamson, who is out due to injury. Under the captaincy of Tom Latham, the Blackcaps are aiming to break India's Test win record at home. The New Zealand attack has capable hands in pacers Matt Henry, William O'Rourke and the experienced Tim Southee if they are allowed to play here after a severe decline in form. This will be an interesting fight.

IND vs NZ, 1st Test Day 1 Live: India relies on Kohli-Rohit

Rohit Sharma, who has played 15 innings this year, made two hundreds but managed just one fifty in the remaining 13, taking his total to just over 35 to 497 runs in eight Tests. Virat Kohli, who is 53 runs shy of 9,000 Test runs, has failed to even hit a fifty in six innings this year and while Rohit often perishes in his attempt to ride the momentum, his colleague presents a much stranger case. The 35-year-old Kohli was unable to convert the two starts he had this year, finishing with 46 (against South Africa) and 47 (against Bangladesh), bringing unpleasant memories of the big slump between 2019 and 2023 woke up.

IND vs NZ, 1st Test Day 1 Live: Gill Jaiswal key for India

Shubman Gill's last 10 innings features three hundreds and two fifties, while Yashasvi Jaiswal's last eight Test cricket appearances feature 214 and five fifties. These numbers are nothing to sneeze at. But at the same time it is important for them to build on the foundation with this series, a precursor to the much more difficult trip to Australia next month. Gill appears to have sorted out his problems with the incoming deliveries from pacers, but a trace of the old failure still lingers. In Chennai, Bangladesh pacer Hasan Mahamud harassed him with his supporters before finally grabbing his wicket. Similarly, Jaiswal has a penchant for taking expansive shots against pace bowlers in order to get dismissed, as evidenced by his three recent dismissals against Bangladesh quicks.

IND vs NZ, 1st Test Day 1 live: India's expected starting lineup

While the line-up seemed tight, a report in India Today said that Shubman Gill was feeling pain in his shoulder and neck. If Gill doesn't play, there could be problems having a settled XI. However, here is our expected India XI for the first Test against New Zealand.

IND vs NZ, 1st Test Day 1 Live: It's still raining

It is still raining in Bengaluru and the toss for the first Test between India and New Zealand has been delayed. The players, the fans and everyone else are waiting for the rain to stop to witness some exciting cricket action.

IND vs NZ, 1st Test Day 1 Live: Rain in Bengaluru

Ohh!!! A bad news comes from Bengaluru that the city is in for some rains. As per the current picture, covers are installed at M Chinnaswamy Stadium to protect the pitch. This means the litter has been delayed and the waiting continues. Stay tuned for all live updates.

IND vs NZ, 1st Test Day 1 live: Will Shubman Gill play?

According to a report in India Today, young batsman Shubman Gill is currently suffering from a stiff neck. There are questions about his participation in the first Test against New Zealand. If Gill misses out, it will be a golden opportunity for batsman Sarfaraz Khan to be included in the playing XI.

IND vs NZ, 1st Test Day 1 live: India has a lot of momentum

Team India will come into this series after registering a massive clean sweep against Bangladesh in a recently concluded two-match Test series. Rohit Sharma and Co. secured comfortable victories against Bangladesh and are in strong momentum. The hosts will now look to repeat the same magic against the mighty Kiwis in preparation for the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia.

IND vs NZ, 1st Test Day 1 Live: Hello

Hello and welcome to our live coverage from day one of the first Test between India and New Zealand, direct from the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru. Stay tuned for all live updates.