India name injury replacements for New Zealand T20I series
Shreyas Iyer and Ravi Bishnoi have been added to the squad in the stead of Tilak Varma and Washington Sundar, who were ruled out due to injury.
India have announced changes to their T20I squad to take on New Zealand in a five-match series ahead of next month's ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026.
The BCCI confirmed in a statement that Ravi Bishnoi and Shreyas Iyer - for the first three T20Is - have been slotted into the squad to replace the injured Washington Sundar and Tilak Varma.
Sundar has underwent scans after reporting an acute onset discomfort in his lower rib area while bowling during the first ODI against New Zealand and has been diagnosed with a side strain.
The India all-rounder has been advised to rest for a few days, following which he will report to the BCCI Centre of Excellence (COE) for further management of his injury.
India’s updated T20I squad: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Shreyas Iyer (first three T20Is), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Rinku Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ishan Kishan (WK), Ravi Bishnoi
ALL SQUADS NAMED FOR MEN'S T20 WORLD CUP 2026
Iyer was the other name to be added to the squad to fill in for Varma, who had underwent surgery for an abdominal issue.
India will compete against New Zealand in the first T20I on Wednesday at the VCA Stadium in Jamtha.
The five-match series will present an opportunity to both teams as they prepare for next month’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup that will be held in India and Sri Lanka.
India are placed in Group A alongside Pakistan, Namibia, Netherlands and USA and begin their campaign against USA on February 7 while New Zealand find themselves in Group D alongside Afghanistan, South Africa, Canada and UAE.
New Zealand’s first match of the T20 World Cup is against Afghanistan on February 8.