Injured Rishabh Pant Replaced by Kumar Kushagra for New Zealand A Tests

Rishabh Pant has been ruled out of the India A squad for the opening two matches of the New Zealand tour after failing to recover from a left-side strain in time. The wicketkeeper-batter sustained the injury while leading the Rest of India squad during the Irani Cup fixture.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India has named Kumar Kushagra as his replacement following strong performances that included centuries in the Duleep Trophy final and an India A fixture against Australia A. Pant remains under the care of the BCCI Medical Team, with his availability for the third match yet to be determined.

With Pant sidelined, Dhruv Jurel has taken over the captaincy and wicketkeeping duties for the side. The touring squad also features senior players such as Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, and Washington Sundar, alongside Devdutt Padikkal and Sai Sudharsan.

However, scheduling conflicts with the upcoming ODI series mean that Rahul, Jaiswal, and Sundar are unlikely to feature in the second and third matches. The white-ball fixtures against New Zealand are scheduled for November 4, 7, and 10.

The unofficial Test series begins with the first match in Lincoln from October 24 to 28, followed by the second game in Christchurch from October 31 to November 3. The final fixture returns to Lincoln from November 7 to 10.

Kushagra joins Smaran Ravichandran, Vidarbha batter Yash Rathod, and left-arm seamer Mukesh Choudhary as uncapped players in the travelling party. The updated squad will look to navigate these scheduling hurdles under Jurel's leadership.