IND vs NZ 2021: 3 players born outside New Zealand who will play for Blackcaps in Test series

Reigning World Test champions New Zealand will kick off their new WTC cycle against India tomorrow morning at Green Park in Kanpur. The finalists of the inaugural ICC World Test Championship will play a two-match Test series, with Kanpur and Mumbai set to be the venues for the games.

India got off to a great start in the 2021-23 WTC cycle as they took a 2-1 lead in the series against England. Meanwhile, New Zealand have not played a single Test match since their historic World Test Championship win in England.

India do not have a full-strength squad for the New Zealand Test series

India do not have some of their key players like Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah and KL Rahul for this series. Even captain Virat Kohli will miss the first Test.

On the other hand, New Zealand have a majority of their star players available. While the Blackcaps squad consists of many local players, there are three cricketers in the Kiwi team who were born outside New Zealand.

In this listicle, we will take a look at those three players.

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#1 Ajaz Patel - Born in India

Ajaz Patel was born in Mumbai

New Zealand's left-arm spinner Ajaz Patel will get an opportunity to play a Test match in the city of his birth, Mumbai — the venue for the second match of the series.

The 33-year-old made his international debut for the Blackcaps in 2018. So far, he has played in nine Test matches and seven T20Is for the Kiwis. Patel has bagged 26 wickets in Tests and 11 in T20Is.

It will be interesting to see how the Mumbai-born player performs in the upcoming India vs New Zealand series.

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#2 Glenn Phillips - Born in South Africa

Glenn Phillips played for the Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2021

Wicket-keeper batter Glenn Phillips has made a name for himself with his excellent performances in white-ball cricket. Phillips has played in almost every top T20 league in the world.

The South Africa-born player will now try to perform well in the longest format of the game. Phillips has played only one Test for New Zealand so far, scoring 52 runs at an average of 26.

The 24-year-old has over 2,000 runs in first-class cricket. He will look forward to bringing his first-class cricket experience to the fore if given a chance to play against India in the upcoming series.

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#3 Neil Wagner - Born in South Africa

Neil Wagner has more than 750 first-class wickets to his name

Another South Africa-born player who will turn up for New Zealand in the upcoming Test series is Neil Wagner. The left-arm pacer played a huge role in the Blackcaps' World Test Championship win earlier this year.

Wagner has donned the New Zealand jersey in 54 Tests so far. He has scalped 229 wickets, including 10 four-wicket hauls. The left-arm fast bowler has played Test cricket in India before and will try to help his side with his experience.