India-New Zealand Test: Opening session washed out as rain prevents play

Persistent rain washed out the first session of day 1 of the opening Test between India and New Zealand in Bengaluru on Wednesday.

Even the toss, which was to be held at 9am, had to be postponed.

With rain preventing any kind of on-field activities, Virat Kohli and Yashasvi Jaiswal opted for an indoor net session, along with assistant coach Abhishek Nayar.

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It remains to be seen if Shubman Gill will play, as he was reportedly suffering from a stiff neck.

With Kohli and Sharma not in great form in whites this year, the onus is on Jaiswal and Gill to take up more responsibilities with the bat. Gill has hit three centuries and two fifties in his last 10 innings, while the southpaw has a double hundred and five half-centuries in his last eight innings.

Sharma averaged just over 35 in the eight Tests he has played this year, while Kohli has not scored a fifty in six innings in 2024.

In the pace bowling department, Jasprit Bumrah will spearhead the attack, along with Mohammed Siraj and Akash Deep.

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Spinners Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja would be hoping the rain and overcast conditions do not affect the Chinnaswamy Stadium pitch much, as it has always offered a bit of turn to the slow bowlers. That the New Zealand batters struggled against Sri Lankan spinners in their recent Test series, would raise the spin duo's hopes.

With the drizzle continuing post lunch, it won't be a surprise if the remaining sessions, too, get washed out.