Ruturaj Gaikwad’s hope for selection isn’t over. Yesterday, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) dropped the 28-year-old from India’s ODI team for New Zealand. Announcing Shreyas Iyer’s return to the team, the board was forced to leave out Gaikwad.
However, BCCI did mention that Shreyas would be available only after the BCCI Centre of Excellence (CoE) provided him with a fitness clearance. According to Cricbuzz, the Indian ODI vice-captain is 99% certain to play in Vadodara on January 11.
Ruturaj Gaikwad’s selection relies on Shreyas Iyer again
Shreyas has already been added to Mumbai’s squad for the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT) 2025-26. Along with Shivam Dube and Suryakumar Yadav, he’s expected to play the last two group-stage matches. However, it’s yet to be seen how Shreyas’ body holds up after 100 overs of rigorous cricket.
“He is almost there. He should be available 99 per cent for the first game itself. The one per cent doubt from the COE is whether he can come through the 100 overs, and it will be ascertained in the Vijay Hazare game,” a BCCI source told the publication.
If Shreyas picks up a niggle or perhaps doesn’t look ready, the medical team at the CoE might pull him out of the India vs New Zealand series. That’s where Gaikwad has a chance. The BCCI views him as the ‘next in line’. This was evident during the South Africa series, where he was picked over Tilak Varma to play at Shreyas’s number four position.
Gaikwad had come into the ODI team after 2 years on the back of Shreyas’ injury and will have to bank on his fitness again for the chance to play against New Zealand.
India’s ODI squad for New Zealand series
Shubman Gill (c), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul (wk), Shreyas Iyer (vc)*, Washington Sundar, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Siraj, Harshit Rana, Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Arshdeep Singh, Yashasvi Jaiswal
Note: *Shreyas Iyer’s availability is subject to fitness clearance from BCCI COE
Editor's Pick
Cricket
M Chinnaswamy Stadium gets ready for IPL 2026 as RCB search for new home
Top Stories
