3 Indian players who deserved to be in Test team for NZ tour

India's Test squad for the tour of New Zealand drew considerable attention, not just for who was included but for some notable omissions. Several domestic performers had put together strong red-ball campaigns that made a compelling case for selection. The selectors had difficult choices to make, and not every deserving player could find a place in the final squad.

Here are three Indian players who deserved to be in Test team for NZ tour:

1. Auqib Nabi Dar

Auqib Nabi Dar was the standout bowler of the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy season, finishing as the leading wicket-taker with 60 wickets across 17 innings at a bowling average of 12.65. The right-arm medium bowler from Jammu and Kashmir took eight five-wicket hauls, a tally equal to the most by any pacer in a first-class season in India. His 60 wickets rank as the seventh-highest by any bowler in a single Ranji Trophy edition and the third-highest among fast bowlers, behind Jaydev Unadkat's 67 in 2019-20 and Dodda Ganesh's 62 in 1998-99.

Nabi was named Player of the Series as Jammu and Kashmir claimed their maiden Ranji Trophy title, with Karnataka as runners-up. He also became the first J&K bowler to take 50-plus wickets in a Ranji Trophy edition and the first to top the bowling charts in any Ranji season. Across all senior men's domestic tournaments in 2025-26, Nabi claimed 95 wickets, the second-highest aggregate for any bowler in a season in India behind Unadkat's 105 in 2019-20. Despite this, the selectors rewarded Haryana's Anshul Kamboj with a maiden Test call-up, while Nabi was included in the India A red-ball squad and the latter part of the senior ODI squad.