Khalid Jamil omits Gurpreet Singh Sandhu from 23-man India squad for New Zealand friendlies

Khalid Jamil on Friday named a 23-member India squad for a two-match friendly series in New Zealand, leaving veteran goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu out of the selection.

Gurpreet's omission follows India's 0-4 defeat to Brazil in October, a match in which the experienced goalkeeper had a difficult outing, and comes as Jamil seeks to reshape his squad ahead of two away fixtures. India have named Hrithik Tiwari, Som Kumar and Vishal Kaith as their three goalkeeping options for the tour. India will face New Zealand on November 12 at the Go Media Stadium in Auckland and again on November 15 at the One New Zealand Stadium in Christchurch. The matches are scheduled against a New Zealand side preparing for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

The squad includes three players from Naushad Moosa's SAFF Championship 2026 contingent: Bijoy Varghese, Muhammad Suhail and Liston Colaco, who will leave the tournament in Dhaka to join the senior team in New Zealand.

Farukh Choudhary, Noufal PN and Hmingthanmawia Ralte have been released from the SAFF Championship squad and will return to their club, Mumbai City FC. Ronney Kharbudon will miss the New Zealand trip after picking up an injury.

Jamil acknowledged the level of the opposition and the chance for his team to improve away from home. "New Zealand are also a World Cup-playing nation and a strong opponent, and these two matches will be a good test for us away from home. We want to prepare well, play with discipline and use this opportunity to improve as a team," he said.

The New Zealand-bound players will assemble in Bengaluru on Saturday, November 7, and will train the following day. They are scheduled to depart for Auckland later on the night of November 8.