Rishabh Pant to Miss Initial Matches of India A's New Zealand Tour

Rishabh Pant's Injury Update

New Delhi, October 12: Wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant will not participate in the first two matches of India A's upcoming tour to New Zealand due to a left-side strain. This injury occurred while he was captaining the Rest of India during the Irani Cup.

Pant is currently under the care of the BCCI Medical Team and is making progress in his recovery. A decision regarding his participation in the third match will be made later. In his absence, Kumar Kushagra has been appointed as his replacement for the initial two games.

According to a statement from the BCCI, "Rishabh Pant, whose fitness was a concern for the India A tour of New Zealand, has been ruled out of the first two matches. He is recovering well under the supervision of the BCCI Medical Team. A decision on his availability for the third match will be made at a later date. Kumar Kushagra has been named as his replacement for the first two matches."

The India A team is scheduled to tour New Zealand for a three-match unofficial Test series from October 24 to November 10, with matches taking place in Lincoln and Christchurch.

The squad includes several players with significant international experience, such as KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sai Sudharsan, and Washington Sundar, which should bolster both the batting and bowling departments as they prepare for this overseas challenge.

Here is the updated squad for India A: Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Devdutt Padikkal, Ravichandran Smaran, Dhruv Jurel [C] [WK], Washington Sundar, Auqib Nabi, Akash Deep, Anshul Kamboj, Manav Suthar, Mukesh Choudhary, Sai Sudharsan, Yash Rathod, Mukesh Kumar, and Kumar Kushagra [WK] (for the first and second matches).