The Indian team management has chosen to include Suryakumar Yadav and veteran pacer Mohammed Shami in the starting XI one day after Hardik Pandya was ruled out of India’s fifth World Cup match against New Zealand (IND vs NZ), which will be played in Dharamsala on Sunday.
Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan left the optional net session on Saturday earlier on Saturday, giving the Indian team pause. Kishan was stung by a honeybee in the back of his head while batting under the lights at the HPCA Stadium on Saturday, while Surya had suffered a knock to his right wrist.
However, the team management decided to change up their playing lineup as a result of the injury to all-rounder Pandya, giving them a chance to make the playing XI.
According to the reports, SuryaKumar Yadav and Mohammed Shami were already briefed by the team management that they would be playing in the upcoming match.
On Saturday, Rahul Dravid, the head coach of the Indian side, had hinted that Mohammed Shami and SuryaKumar Yadav might play during the pre-game press conference.
On Saturday, Surya was struck in the nets by Raghu’s full toss, a throwdown expert. The batter was then observed putting an icepack on his wrist, bandaging it, and walking away from the nets.
IND vs NZ: A Overview
Due to their outstanding performance, the Indian squad has won all four of their games. However, they will face a team that has always put up a fight when they play New Zealand on Sunday.
There is more at stake for India versus New Zealand than just reversing their dismal historical performance against their World Cup foe.
The two Cricket World Cup standouts now sit on top the standings with four victories from four games, and both will be looking to extend their respective winning streaks while putting further distance between themselves and the trailing group.
With a 5-3 edge in previous competitions, New Zealand has somewhat of a stranglehold on India in the main event. They also memorably defeated India in their most recent Cricket World Cup match to secure a spot in the 2019 Final.
However, India may try to put the past behind them after having a successful opening round of the Cricket World Cup at home, which included decisive wins over rival Pakistan and five-time champion Australia.
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