India confirm XI with Ryan Williams starting for Auckland friendly against New Zealand
India and New Zealand met in an international friendly at Go Media Stadium in Auckland on 12 November, with kick-off listed as 11:30 AM IST in some reports and 11:40 AM IST in another.
The fixture is the first meeting between the two nations since the 2018 Intercontinental Cup, when New Zealand beat India 2-1 to end the Blue Tigers’ winning run in that competition. New Zealand arrived after an October window in which they faced Palestine, China, Japan and Panama, managing wins in the latter two matches, and had also featured in the FIFA World Cup 2026 in a group alongside Iran, Egypt and Belgium. India came into the friendly following an October programme that included games against Panama, Brazil and Uruguay, while a separate India squad is competing in the SAFF Championship in Dhaka and has secured qualification to the semi-finals.
India’s starting XI for the friendly was named as: Vishal Kaith (GK); Abhishek Singh Tekcham; Pramveer Singh; Bijoy Varghese; Akash Mishra; Anirudh Thapa; Manvir Singh; Ryan Williams; Jithin Madathil Subran; Liston Colaco; Lalremtluanga Fanai. The India bench listed Som Kumar (GK), Hrithik Tiwari (GK), Mehtab Singh, Lalrinliana Hnamte, Mohammed Sanan, Roshan Singh Naorem, Muhammad Suhail, David Lalhlansanga, Ricky Meetei Haobam, Jay Gupta, Tomba Singh Haobam and Ashique Kuruniyan.
New Zealand’s starting XI was announced as: Alex Paulsen (GK); Callan Elliot; Francis De Vries; Lachlan Bayliss; Logan Rogerson; Chris Wood; Matthew Garbett; Alex Rufer; Nando Pijnaker; Bill Tuiloma; Jesse Randall. Their substitutes included Michael Woud (GK), Henry Gray (GK), Matthew Sheridan, Michael Boxall, Finn Surman, Lukas Kelly-Heald, James McGarry, Owen Parker-Price, Callum McCowatt, Liam Gillion, Nathan Walker and Corban Piper.
Khalid Jamil is named as the head coach of the Indian National Football Team for the match. The Blue Tigers’ XI was described in match build-up as the starting selection for the friendly in Auckland, with Ryan Williams included in the XI.
Broadcast details provided in the match information specify that the FIFA international friendly will be live-streamed on FIFA+ via DAZN.com and the DAZN app, and that the game could also be watched live on TVNZ from 7pm NZT.
India’s involvement in two simultaneous programmes is the immediate implication: this Auckland friendly features one selection while another Indian squad has already advanced to the SAFF Championship semi-finals in Dhaka.