New Zealand will miss veteran fast bowlers Tim Southee and Trent Boult but it will give new players an opportunity to take responsibility on the tour of India, stand-in captain Tom Latham said ahead of the first ODI in Hyderabad on Wednesday. Saudi has returned home after a successful tour of Pakistan while Boult is playing in the ILT20 in the UAE after opting out of New Zealand’s central contract. In the batting department, the team will miss regular skipper Kane Williamson.

Latham said in the pre-match press conference on Tuesday, “They (Boult, Southee, Williamson) are not in the team and we will miss them.” On the other hand, it is an opportunity for other players in the team. All the players in the team have played international cricket which is a bonus. “He said,” Now it is their turn to take responsibility. We are fortunate to have Lockie Ferguson who has played a lot of cricket in India. Ferguson will lead the New Zealand pace attack which also includes Blair Tickner, Doug Bracewell and Henry Shipley. The left-handed batsman said that senior spinner Ish Sodhi has also been ruled out of the first ODI due to a minor injury.

Sodhi practiced in the nets on Tuesday but did not bowl as hard as he usually does. A good player of spin, Latham spent maximum time in the nets. Latham said, “Unfortunately Ish has a minor injury. He will not be available tomorrow but hopefully he will be available for the next few matches. After a memorable 2-1 win in Pakistan, New Zealand will enter the ODI series in India. Latham said the series assumes immense significance in view of the ODI World Cup to be held in India in October-November.

He said, “We played very good cricket in Pakistan. Some of the players had never toured Pakistan before and still winning the series is great. Here we will try to adjust to the conditions as much as possible. ”””’ Latham said, the wicket in India will probably be a little better than in Pakistan. Whenever we play India, it is a competitive series. In the context of the World Cup, he said, “The World Cup is not far away and before that this is our last chance to play in these conditions. We will try to learn as much as possible from these situations. Fortunately, most of the players have played in Indian conditions.

Latham said he has prepared against the Indian bowlers including the spin duo of Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav. Their batsmen will also benefit from playing in Pakistan before the tour of India. Virat Kohli has returned to form and scored three hundreds in the last four ODIs but Latham said the team has plans in place for India’s star batsman. He said, “Virat is playing very good cricket. Looks like he is hitting the ball well. We need to make the best plan. We will try to make it as difficult as possible for him (to score runs).