IND vs NZ 2021: "Aate hi kaam shuru kar diye" - Twitterati rejoice after Rohit Sharma wins toss in first attempt for India

Despite inheriting the Team India T20I captaincy from Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma seems to have left the former skipper's awful luck with the toss behind him.

The coin landed in Team India's favor ahead of the first T20I against New Zealand in Jaipur. Sharma chose to bowl first on a ground with a rich history of dew setting in during the second innings.

Sharma announced the debut of all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer and also revealed the return of Shreyas Iyer. The toss was always a talking point during Kohli's reign, with the coin rarely falling in the RCB superstar's favor. The trend continued at the recent T20 World Cup after becoming a constant theme in Team India's crucial encounters of the past.

New Zealand, on the other hand, are coming into the contest after just a three-day interval following the T20 World Cup final. Tim Southee leads the side in the absence of regular skipper Kane Williamson. Lockie Ferguson made a return to the playing XI after suffering an injury at the T20 World Cup.

Here are the playing XIs:

New Zealand (Playing XI): Martin Guptill, Daryl Mitchell, Mark Chapman, Glenn Phillips, Tim Seifert(w), Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee(c), Todd Astle, Lockie Ferguson, Trent Boult

India (Playing XI): Rohit Sharma(c), KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant(w), Venkatesh Iyer, Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Mohammed Siraj

Here are some of the best reactions:

I'm really excited and looking forward to it: Venkatesh Iyer on his India debut

Venkatesh Iyer is Team India's sole seam bowling all-rounder option following the omission of Hardik Pandya from the squad. The Kolkata Knight Riders player was a revelation in the second half of the 2021 IPL and played a vital hand in the franchise's sensational turnaround and subsequent run to the final. After being handed his debut cap, Iyer said:

"Everyone who plays cricket aspires to play for the country, so I feel good that I've been presented with this opportunity. Feels good to play under Rahul (Dravid) sir, I'm really excited and looking forward to it. As a cricketer you got to be flexible, and I'll look to capitalise on the role I've been given. I'm ready to bat at any position, or bowl whenever I've been asked to. It's wonderful to play in front of the (Indian) crowd, it's great to have them back."

Bhuvneshwar Kumar will open the proceedings with the new ball for the Men In Blue with the T20 World Cup opening pair in place for the Blackcaps.