Rishabh Pant has resumed batting in the nets. The wicketkeeper batter had injured himself while practicing for the first ODI against New Zealand in Vadodara on January 10.
Receiving throwdowns at the BCA Stadium, Pant copped a blow just above his waist. He was forced to leave practice. Later, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) revealed that Pant had sustained a side strain (oblique muscle tear). Pant was ruled out of the New Zealand series, with Dhruv Jurel replacing him as India’s backup wicketkeeper.
“Wicket-keeper Rishabh Pant felt a sudden onset discomfort in his right lateral abdominal area while batting in the nets during India’s practice session on Saturday afternoon at the BCA Stadium, Vadodara. He was taken for MRI scans immediately and the BCCI Medical Team had a detailed discussion with an expert on his clinical and radiological findings. Pant has been diagnosed with a side strain (Oblique Muscle Tear) and is subsequently ruled out of the ODI Series,” the BCCI had said.
Rishabh Pant injury update
The 28-year-old has been rehabilitating at the BCCI Centre of Excellence (CoE) since. Last week, it was reported that Pant had regained full fitness. He was expected to start wicketkeeping practice in the coming days. Well, he’s resumed batting as well.
In a video doing the rounds on social media, Pant can be seen batting in the nets at the CoE. This is excellent news for Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). The keeper batter can’t play any competitive cricket since Delhi haven’t made the Ranji Trophy 2025-26 knockout stage, and the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 will be where he makes his comeback.
Since Pant is LSG’s captain, the franchise would breathe a sigh of relief that he’s fit. Although the IPL 2026 season won’t commence until March and the BCCI hasn’t announced the schedule either, it’s good that Pant’s back on his feet.
LSG squad for IPL 2026
Rishabh Pant (c & wk), Nicholas Pooran (wk)✈️, Mitchell Marsh✈️, Aiden Markram✈️, Abdul Samad, Himmat Singh, Matthew Breetzke✈️, Shahbaz Ahamad, Arshin Kulkarni, Ayush Badoni, Digvesh Rathi, Avesh Khan, Akash Singh, Prince Yadav, M Siddharth, Mohsin Khan, Mayank Yadav, Mohammad Shami, Arjun Tendulkar, Wanindu Hasaranga✈️, Anrich Nortje✈️, Mukul Choudhary, Naman Tiwari, Akshat Raghuwanshi, Josh Inglis (wk)✈️
Cricket
IPL 2026 Schedule: What is taking so long for BCCI to release fixtures?
