IND vs NZ 2023: Shreyas Iyer ruled out with back injury, Rajat Patidar named replacement

Indian batter Shreyas Iyer has been ruled out of the upcoming three-match ODI series against New Zealand due to a back injury. Rajat Patidar has been named as the replacement for the Mumbai batter.

Iyer will travel to the National Cricket Academy, Bangalore to start his recovery. The right-hander recently scored 94 runs in three matches against Sri Lanka. Iyer has been in top form in ODI cricket and thus it is a big blow for the home team.

“He will be heading to the National Cricket Academy (NCA) for further assessment and management,” said the statement.

Meanwhile, Iyer suffered a shoulder injury back in 2021 and he had to undergo surgery before the IPL. The right-hander would want to make a solid comeback after the injury. However, Iyer’s recovery time is yet to be finalized by the BCCI.

On the other hand, Iyer had scored 129 runs in the two ODIs against New Zealand after the conclusion of the T20 World Cup. Iyer scored a total of 724 runs in 17 ODI matches at an average of 55.69 and a strike rate of 91.59 in 2022. Thus, Iyer was the leading run-getter in the 50-overs version in the previous season, from a full-time cricketing member.

Meanwhile, Rajat Patidar had a breakthrough season for Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL 2022, scoring a fine century in the Eliminator against Lucknow Super Giants. Patidar received his maiden call-up in the three-match ODI series against South Africa in 2022 but he is yet to make his ODI debut.

The first ODI between India and New Zealand will be played in Hyderabad on Wednesday.

India’s updated squad: Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill, Ishan Kishan (wk), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, KS Bharat (wk), Hardik Pandya (VC), Rajat Patidar, Washington Sundar, Shahbaz Ahmed, Shardul Thakur, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Shami, Mohd. Siraj, Umran Malik.