Three Central Stags have been named in the New Zealand A red-ball team to play against India A in Canterbury over the coming weeks.

With the Stags meanwhile about to embark on The Ford Trophy - the first game of the season starting in Nelson on Wednesday, Tom Bruce will step in as interim Stags captain while regular Ford Trophy skipper Jayden Lennox tests himself against India A, alongside Dean Foxcroft and Curtis Heaphy.

The trio forms part of an extended 19-man New Zealand A squad that gets underway tomorrow at Bert Sutcliffe Oval in the first of the three four-dayers against a strong India A side.

With The Ford Trophy in mind, New Zealand Cricket has selected the New Zealand A side on the basis that 13 players from its squad named today will assemble for each New Zealand A match, with the remaining squad members heading back to their domestic teams to play in The Ford Trophy.

Lennox will be available for the first two New Zealand A matches only, while Heaphy and Foxcroft could be absent from the first four rounds of The Ford Trophy this season if selected in every match.

NZC Head of High Performance Development Pete Sanford said the matches present a great chance to continue to develop New Zealand’s stocks.

"We're really looking forward to hosting India A," he said.

"They've announced a very strong line-up which poses a great opportunity for growth, as players to test their strengths against international class.

"There's a huge buzz around having India on our shores and I know the squad are raring to get their domestic summer underway.”

v

INDIA A

red-ball

Canterbury, New Zealand

October-November 2026

Rhys Mariu captain, Canterbury

Adi Ashok Auckland (game 3)

Matt Boyle Canterbury

Max Chu wicketkeeper, Otago (games 1 + 3)

Kristian Clarke Northern Districts (games 1 + 2)

Matt Fisher Northern Districts (game 2)

Dean Foxcroft Central Stags

Zak Gibson Northern Districts (games 1 + 2)

Mitch Hay wicketkeeper, Canterbury (games 1 + 2)

Curtis Heaphy Central Stags

Simon Keene Auckland (games 2 + 3)

Nick Kelly Northern Districts (game 3)

Jayden Lennox Central Stags (games 1 + 2)

Ben Lister Auckland (game 3)

Jarrod McKay Otago

Henry Nicholls Canterbury (game 3)

Cam Paul Canterbury (game 3)

Tim Robinson Wellington (games 1 + 2)

Fraser Sheat Canterbury

Article added: Friday 23 October 2026