Rishabh Pant ruled out of India vs New Zealand ODI series, Dhruv Jurel named replacement

India wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant was on Sunday ruled out of the three-match ODI series against New Zealand and Dhruv Jurel will take his place in the squad, the BCCI announced.

Pant got hurt while training in the nets on the eve of the first ODI set to be played at the BCA stadium in Vadodara.

“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,” BCCI stated in a release.

“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 release added.

As reported by Sportstar earlier, the injury will take at least 10 days to heal due to heavy bruising.

Jurel, who was with Uttar Pradesh squad in Bengaluru for the Vijay Hazare Trophy knockouts, has been called up. The 24-year-old wicketkeeper-batter has been in fine form, scoring 558 runs in seven innings including two hundred and four fifties. He notched up his highest score in List A cricket, 160 not out, during the VHT league stage.

Pant, too, played the entire league stage with Delhi and led the team to the knockout stage. The senior wicketkeeper scored 212 runs in six innings with the best score of 70.

Published on Jan 11, 2026