When India hosts New Zealand in the second Test in Pune, they will be looking for atonement. The tourists took a 1-0 lead in the three-match Test series after defeating India by eight wickets.

The outcome of the next two Test matches will have a significant impact on India’s chances of winning the World Test Championship. Ravichandran Ashwin is on the verge of setting a huge milestone ahead of the second Test in Pune. The 38-year-old is just two wickets away from setting a new WTC record for most wickets taken.

With 38 WTC games played, Ashwin has taken 186 wickets, one less than Australia’s Nathan Lyon, who leads with 187. Ashwin is expected to overtake Lyon in the WTC rankings in this match since the Pune surface is predicted to provide a significant turn.

The offspinner has been a revelation at home, and Rohit Sharma’s plans will heavily rely on him as India looks to win the WTC final for the third time in a row. Ashwin demonstrated his batting abilities against Bangladesh in addition to his bowling antics, and he might be quite helpful in these circumstances.

Tom Latham, the captain of New Zealand, won the toss in Pune and chose to bat first for the match.

Shubman Gill, Akash Deep, and Washington Sundar have replaced KL Rahul, Mohammed Siraj, and Kuldeep Yadav in India’s three-man lineup.

Mitchell Santner has taken Matt Henry’s position in the starting lineup for the visitors.

India’s starting lineup includes: Sarfaraz Khan, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Akash Deep, Jasprit Bumrah, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant (w), Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Rohit Sharma (c).

The starting lineup for New Zealand is Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Ajaz Patel, William Orourke, Devon Conway, Will Young, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, and Tom Blundell (w).