India, trailing 1-0 against New Zealand, made three significant changes for the second Test in Pune as Akash Deep replaced out-of-form Mohammed Siraj, Shubman Gill came in for KL Rahul, and all-rounder Washington Sundar was included for Kuldeep Yadav. In 2024, an out-of-form Siraj had multiple below-par outings in the longest format at home which were a cause for concern for the Indian team.