Due to a left thigh injury, Indian opener KL Rahul has been sidelined for the two-match Test series against New Zealand. The right-hander will miss the home clashes, leading the BCCI to name middle-order batter Suryakumar Yadav as his replacement. The board confirmed that a muscle strain in the left thigh is the reason for Rahul's absence from the Paytm series.
The BCCI announced that KL Rahul will undergo a rehabilitation program at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru to recover. His focus will be on training and preparing for the upcoming series against South Africa next month. Meanwhile, although Suryakumar was included in the red-ball squad for the tour of England earlier this year, the 31-year-old has yet to play his first Test match.
Suryakumar has built a strong reputation playing for Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy. His 2019-20 campaign was particularly notable, where he scored 508 runs in ten innings at an average of 56.44 and maintained a high strike rate of 95.13, including two fifties. He is now a prime candidate, along with Shreyas Iyer, to make his Test debut against the Kiwis.
With KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma out of the picture, India will rely on Shubman Gill and Mayank Agarwal to open the innings. Ajinkya Rahane will take charge as captain for the first Test, while regular skipper Virat Kohli, who is currently being rested, is expected to return for the second match.
India's bowling attack will feature a pace battery of Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Siraj, Umesh Yadav, and Prasidh Krishna, while the spin department will be led by Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, and Jayant Yadav. The action begins on November 25th in Kanpur.