Rahul Dravid explains absence of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma for New Zealand T20Is

Kohli and Sharma featured in the preceding ODI series against New Zealand, but have not been included in the squad for the three T20Is.

"At this stage, we've narrowed down on the group of players we want and we are almost there. It's only about ensuring that the players that we've narrowed down, we play them more in one-day cricket and prioritize this format," said Dravid.

"It is a challenge in that sense: you have three formats and you have to prioritize a couple of them. World Test Championship is always the priority, it is always there in the background. Along with that, you have to figure out which is the white ball event you're playing."

Fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja also have not been included in the squad for the T20I series against New Zealand. Both are recovering from injury.

"In the case of Bumrah and Jadeja, it's not exactly workload management. They had injuries and had to sit out. We keep reviewing these things. Injury management and workload management are two different things," added Dravid.

"We have to balance both and see what's the priority for us in the short-term considering a lot of cricket that we play, ensuring that we have the big players available for the big tournaments."

All-rounder Hardik Pandya and batsman Suryakumar Yadav have been named captain and vice-captain, respectively, for India's T20I series against New Zealand.