IND vs NZ: Rishabh Pant officially ruled out of the ODIs against New Zealand, BCCI names replacement

Rishabh Pant was ruled out of the IND vs NZ ODI series after being hit during practice session on Saturday afternoon.

Rishabh Pant, the Indian wicketkeeper-batsman, was ruled out less than 24 hours ago from the ODI series against New Zealand owing to an injury. Pant was hit by a delivery during the practice session at the Kotambi Stadium, Vadodara, on Saturday afternoon.

The ODI series starts on Sunday, January 11, with the first ODI to be played in Vadodara. Pant, who has had long injury troubles in the last two years, has found himself in and out of the Indian white-ball sides. His most horrific injury was in 2022, when he was involved in a car accident that almost turned out to be fatal. He missed the Indian Primer League (IPL) 2023 and a whole lot of international cricket. Last year, in the Test series against England, he picked up a toe injury in the fourth Test that ruled him out of the series.

As Pant was gearing up for the IND vs NZ ODIs, he was hit by a delivery from the sidearm specialist during practice. It was a painful as he winced in pain. Pant underwent scans and was diagnosed with a side strain (Oblique Muscle Tear).

The Board of Control for Cricket in India released the official statement on the same and stated:

“Wicket-keeper Rishabh Pant felt a sudden onset discomfort in his right lateral abdominal area while batting in the nets during India’s practice session on Saturday afternoon at the BCA Stadium, Vadodara. He was taken for MRI scans immediately and the BCCI Medical Team had a detailed discussion with an expert on his clinical and radiological findings. Pant has been diagnosed with a side strain (Oblique Muscle Tear).”

Dhruv Jurel replaces Rishabh Pant in Indian squad for IND vs NZ series

Meanwhile, the BCCI has named Dhruv Jurel as Pant’s replacement for the ODI series against the Kiwis. A few reports claimed that Ishan Kishan was likely to replace Pant in the ODI squad as he was already picked for the T20I series against New Zealand.

However, the BCCI selectors went in with Jurel, who is yet to make his ODI debut for India. Pant’s unfortunate injury has now opened up an opportunity for Jurel and it will be interesting to see if he makes his ODI debut in the first ODI.

“The Men’s Selection Committee has named Dhruv Jurel as Pant’s replacement, and Jurel has linked up with the squad,” stated BCCI

India’s updated ODI squad

Shubman Gill (C), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul (WK), Shreyas Iyer (VC), Washington Sundar, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohd Siraj, Harshit Rana, Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Yadav, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Arshdeep Singh, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel (WK).

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