Conway ruled out of 1st ODI vs India after collision with Henry during training session, NZ's injury woes deepen

New Zealand's injury woes have deepened ahead of the five-ODI series opener on November 4 in Auckland. New Zealand opener Devon Conway suffered an injury as he collided with teammate Matt Henry while fielding during a training session on the eve of the first ODI. In the pre-match press conference, captain Mitchell Santner said Conway is doubtful for the first ODI. Later, a press release from New Zealand Cricket (NZC) confirmed that Conway has been ruled out of the clash.

“Devon Conway and Matt Henry collided while attempting a catch during the BLACKCAPS training today at Eden Park,” NZC said in a statement.

“Both players were immediately treated by medical staff on-site and received Head Injury Assessments.

“Conway was taken to A&E for further examination which confirmed a concussion that has ruled him out of the first ODI against India tomorrow.”

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Conway was hit by a ball on his cheekbone while fielding. After the incident, both players were taken to the hospital. Henry's participation was already doubtful. He had sustained a tight card in the second T20I and was ruled out of the remainder of T20Is.

“It’s one of those ones you want to take very seriously, head knocks. We have a backup batter in line just in case, but we’ll wait and see how he pulls up. But it didn’t look great to be fair," Santner said.

Henry did not suffer a concussion and looked okay according to Santner.

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Who will open for New Zealand in 1st ODI vs India?

On November 2, New Zealand Cricket (NZC) announced Tim Seifert as replacement for an unfit Rachin Ravindra, who will require a few more weeks to recover. In addition, Mark Chapman is ruled out too. Henry Nicholls has replaced Chapman for the first three ODIs. Then, Dean Foxcroft will take Nicholls’ place following the four-day series between New Zealand A and India A.

Seifert has been confirmed as the backup opener. If Conway does not get clearance from the medical staff, Seifert is highly likely to open the innings alongside Will Young. Seifert's previous ODI appearance was in April 2025 against Pakistan. In that game, he batted in the middle order and scored 26 runs. He is yet to open in ODIs. However, he recently regained form and scored 93 runs in the fifth and final T20I of the series. 

"Yeah, I guess he's [Seifert] the back-up batter in our squad," Santner said. "So it'll probably be a direct swap if Dev's unavailable, which is a shame. He [Conway] is obviously very good in one-day cricket and, you know, was biding his time in the T20 series. And, yeah, I guess another one of those freak accidents that happens."

Nicholls can open the innings as well. Last week, he scored a century for Canterbury while opening against Wellington in the Ford Trophy match. Nicholls has opened 29 times in ODIs. He has 799 runs, including seven fifties as an ODI opener.

If the need arises, Tom Latham is an experienced opener as well. He has 1,254 runs as an opener in ODIs, averaging 38. He has scored three tons and eight fifties in ODIs so far.

Conway's ODI record vs India 

Conway has played 11 ODIs against India and scored 307 runs from 10 innings at an average of 34.11. He has a ton and a fifty against India in this format. 

India vs New Zealand Auckland ODI pitch report 

Santner expects the Eden Park pitch to help the pacers with extra bounce. He pointed out that the conditions here will make it tough for the fielders to catch the ball. 

"Yeah, I guess it's a different format, but we've played here a lot in one-day cricket," Santner said. "The pitch traditionally has a bit of bounce, like we saw in the T20, and it's the same surface.

"Ground dimensions is always one to play into your mind at Eden Park. Traditionally, there's a little bit of bounce, which, you know, is good for the seamers. And it can be quite swirly with the wind, you know, which can make it quite a tough catching ground."

New Zealand have pacers like Kyle Jamieson who can exploit the bounce in Auckland. India will be missing the services of their unfit pacer Prasidh Krishna. In Krishna's absence, Gurnoor Brar and Arshdeep Singh will be backed to trouble the Kiwi batters with the bounce. Also, Shubman Gill would expect his fielders to put on a better show than they did in the T20I series.

New Zealand's updated ODI squad vs India

First three ODIs: Mitchell Santner (c), Michael Bracewell, Devon Conway (out of first ODI), Jacob Duffy, Matthew Fisher, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Tom Latham (wk), Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Glenn Phillips, Tim Seifert, Nathan Smith, Will Young, Blair Tickner. 

Last two ODIs: Mitchell Santner (c), Finn Allen, Michael Bracewell, Kristian Clarke, Jacob Duffy, Matthew Fisher, Dean Foxcroft, Lockie Ferguson, Mitchell Hay (wk), Nick Kelly, Tim Seifert (wk), Blair Tickner, Will Young.

India’s updated ODI squad for the first three ODIs:

Shubman Gill (c), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (vc), KL Rahul (wk), Axar Patel, Naman Dhir, Anshul Kamboj, Gurnoor Brar, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Arshdeep Singh, Ishan Kishan (wk), Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Nitish Kumar Reddy (only for the first ODI), Auqib Nabi. 

India’s ODI squad for fourth and fifth ODIs:

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

India vs New Zealand ODI series schedule