India won the toss and elected to bowl first against New Zealand in the first ODI in Vadodara. Captain Shubman Gill stated the decision was to test different team combinations, including six bowling options. New Zealand captain Michael Bracewell confirmed Kristian Clarke and Adithya Ashok will debut for the Kiwis. Rishabh Pant has been ruled out of the series for India due to injury, with Dhruv Jurel replacing him.