Ayush Badoni’s wait for an India debut goes on.
Despite being drafted into the squad, the young Delhi batter was overlooked as India turned to Nitish Kumar Reddy to replace the injured Washington Sundar for the second ODI against New Zealand in Rajkot on Wednesday.
Sundar has been ruled out of the remainder of the series with a side strain, forcing India into a reshuffle.
While Badoni was the obvious name on the bench, the team management stuck to head coach Gautam Gambhir’s preference for all-rounders, handing Reddy the nod instead.
New Zealand won the toss and chose to bowl, though India skipper Shubman Gill admitted batting first had always been the plan.
“We would actually have preferred to bat first, based on the last few games here. Even yesterday
there wasn’t much dew, and the surface tends to slow down as the innings goes on,” Gill said at the toss.
“Washington is out of the series, so Nitesh comes in for him.”
The visitors, despite fielding an inexperienced side, made India work hard at the Kotambi Stadium in the first ODI. Three of New Zealand’s top four batters struck fifties, while Kristian Clarke’s late flourish pushed them to a competitive total.
India’s reply was steady rather than spectacular. The top four all got starts and appeared to be cruising before Kyle Jamieson’s three quick strikes briefly tilted the contest. Still, the hosts held their nerve, scraping home with an over to spare.
Virat Kohli’s imperious form continues to mask growing injury concerns within the Indian camp, and India will be eager to keep the list from growing as they chase a series-clinching win.
India had taken the opener in Vadodara by four wickets, but Sundar’s injury has forced an early rethink.
Playing XIs
India:
Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill (c), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna
New Zealand:
Devon Conway, Henry Nicholls, Will Young, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Hay (wk), Michael Bracewell (c), Zakary Foulkes, Jayden Lennox, Kyle Jamieson, Kristian Clarke
