Rishabh Pant ruled out of New Zealand ODI series with side strain, Dhruv Jurel named his replacement

India star wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant has suffered another injury, this time a side strain which has ruled him out of the New Zealand ODI series at home starting on Sunday, January 11.

As per the BCCI release, the left-hander felt discomfort in his right abdominal area while batting in the nets on the eve of the first ODI in Vadodara. The 28-year-old was rushed for an MRI scan, the diagnosis of which revealed an oblique muscle tear.

"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) and is subsequently ruled out of the ODI Series," the BCCI stated.

Pant has been unlucky with fitness in the last six months or so. The southpaw suffered a left index finger injury during the third Test at Lord's against England in July. As a result, the star batter could not keep wickets but did bat subsequently. Moreover, in the fourth Test at Old Trafford, Pant tried to reverse sweep a Chris Woakes delivery which ended up hitting his right foot. The injury kept him out of action for a couple of months.

The left-hander had been playing a number of List A matches for Delhi as captain ahead of the New Zealand series. The aggressive batter scored 212 runs in six innings including two fifties in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025-26, helping his team enter the quarter-finals.

Meanwhile, Pant's injury does not impact the Indian team's plans as KL Rahul is slated to keep wickets. As a matter of fact, the Men’s Selection Committee named wicketkeeper Dhruv Jurel as Pant's replacement for the series.

Jurel is yet to play for India in the 50-over format. The right-hander had an impressive VHT for Uttar Pradesh, scoring 558 runs in seven innings at an average of 93 and a strike rate of 122.90. The 24-year-old added four half centuries and two hundreds to his kitty in the domestic tournament.

After the first ODI today, the teams move to Rajkot and Indore for the second and third match of the series on January 14 and 18 respectively.