India vs New Zealand 2016: Rohit Sharma retained in Test squad; Stuart Binny, Shardul Thakur dropped

Rohit Sharma, who has been struggling in Tests, was retained in India's 15-man squad for upcoming Test series against New Zealand.

New Delhi: The Board of Cricket for Control in India (BCCI) on Monday announced the 15-man squad for the upcoming three-match Test series against New Zealand.

BCCI secretary Ajay Shirke announced the names of the 15 players at a press conference.

Hon.Secretary Mr. Ajay Shirke lists out the #TeamIndia squad for the 3-match Test series against New Zealand #INDvNZ pic.twitter.com/jUJyDboa32

— BCCI (@BCCI) September 12, 2016

India's 15-man Test squad - Virat Kohli (Capt), Lokesh Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Murali Vijay, Rohit Sharma, R Ashwin, Wriddhiman Saha, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Shikhar Dhawan, Amit Mishra, Umesh Yadav

​Sandeep Patil, chairman of the senior national selection committee, was also present at the conference and said that the Indian board was happy with the performances of Indian team across formats.

Patil added that the final 11 will be picked by Kohli and coach Anil Kumble.

The Indian team has been in brilliant form ever since Kohli took over Test captaincy from MS Dhoni. India recently thrashed West Indies 2-0 on their home ground, which was their third consecutive Test series win.

They beat Sri Lanka in their own den last year and followed it up with a 3-0 win against South Africa at home.

India will now look to continue their dominance at home against New Zealand, who are coming at the back of a series loss against South Africa.

The Kiwis had announced their squad for the Test series on September 6. Kane Williamson will lead the Test side for the first time in India.

Considering India's spinner-friendly pitches, New Zealand have picked three spinners in their squad – Ish Sodhi, Mark Craig and all-rounder Mitchell Santner.