Dhruv Jurel has been named as Rishabh Pant's replacement in the Indian squad for the upcoming three-match ODI series against New Zealand. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the change on Sunday after Pant suffered a side strain injury during a practice session.
Pant experienced discomfort in his right lateral abdominal area while batting in the nets at the BCA Stadium, Vadodara, on Saturday afternoon. The BCCI medical team immediately conducted MRI scans and consulted with an expert, diagnosing Pant with a side strain (Oblique Muscle Tear). Consequently, he was ruled out of the ODI series and will report to the Centre of Excellence for further assessment and rehabilitation after a period of rest. Videos circulating on social media showed Pant leaving the ground in pain, attended to by the team physio and doctor.
Jurel, who has been in excellent form in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy, has already joined the squad. The 24-year-old has been Uttar Pradesh's top scorer in the tournament, amassing 558 runs in seven matches at an average of over 90, including two centuries and four half-centuries. His impressive performance has helped Uttar Pradesh secure the top spot in the Elite Group B points table with wins in all seven of their matches.
This isn't the first time Pant's career has been hampered by injuries. A major car accident in 2022 led to a lengthy absence from international cricket and the IPL. Last year, he missed a Test match against England and two Tests against the West Indies after being hit on the toe. Despite these setbacks, Pant has played 31 ODIs, scoring 871 runs with one century and five fifties. His last ODI appearance was in August 2024 against Sri Lanka.
KL Rahul is also in the squad as a wicketkeeper-batter.
India's updated ODI squad is as follows: 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).
