Jaipur: Indian stand-in skipper Gautam Gambhir won the toss and decided to field against New Zealand in the second one-day international at the Sawai Man Singh Stadium on Wednesday.
India retained the playing eleven of the first ODI while the visitors made couple of changes in the team.
Captain Daniel Vettori returned to the side replacing Grant Elliot whereas Tim Southee was included in place of injured Daryl Tuffey.
Regular stars such as skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh being rested for the first two one-dayers, Kohli stole the limelight with a fine hundred that paved the way for India's 40-run win in the series opener.
India have a good record at this venue winning six out of 10 matches, the last being a humdinger against South Africa in February when the hosts won by one run.
India have lost just one match against South Africa on February 27 in the two series it has played at home in 2010.
India won the series against the Proteas 2-1 and pipped Australia 1-0 in the rain-hit series in October.
It was no surprise that Taylor later regretted his shot selection. Nothing would boost the visitors more than the return of Vettori and McCullum, but if today's net session was any indication, the two still looks doubtful.
The team management though, boosted by the appointment of former England coach Duncan Fletcher as its full-time coaching consultant, has its fingers crossed.
Fletcher, who has just joined the squad, has been hired by New Zealand Cricket (NZC) in a bid to 'keep the environment fresh' within the team.
Teams
India: Gautam Gambhir (captain), Murali Vijay, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Yusuf Pathan, Sreesanth, Ashish Nehra, Munaf Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin.
New Zealand: Daniel Vettori (captain), Martin Guptill, Jamie How, Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor, Scott Styris, Gareth Hopkins (wk), Nathan McCullum, Andy McKay, Kyle Mills, Tim Southee.