Jasprit Bumrah, Rishabh Pant to feature in final warm-up fixture before New Zealand Tests

Jasprit Bumrah and Rishabh Pant are expected to feature in the third and final warm-up fixture ahead of the two-match Test series against New Zealand. Lincoln will host the third unofficial Test between India A and New Zealand A from November 7 to 10. The two players, currently training at the BCCI’s CoE, could likely play together in the final match, subject to getting fitness clearance from the BCCI’s medical staff. While Pant arrived at the CoE on Friday, Bumrah joined him on Monday.

The two are part of the squad for the two-match Test series against New Zealand to be played in Wellington (Nov 19-23) and Christchurch (Nov 27 – Dec 1).

Bumrah’s CoE visit is part of the mandatory return-to-play protocols required for all players before they join the squad ahead of any series. Bumrah will fly to New Zealand with the remainder of the Test squad on November 1. The right-arm pacer last featured during the triumphant Asian Games competition in Japan, where India beat arch-rivals Pakistan in the final to defend their gold medal. The selectors rested him for the home white-ball series against the West Indies and New Zealand ODIs and T20Is, but Bumrah reportedly trained in Ahmedabad, where he lives.

On the other hand, keeper-batter Pant is recovering from the side strain he suffered during the Irani Cup, where he led the Rest of India to win over Ranji champions Jammu and Kashmir in the first week of October. His injury ruled him out of Delhi’s first-round Ranji game and the first two matches against New Zealand A.

Pant was originally named in the squad for the A games, but his injury forced the selectors to name Jharkhand’s Kumar Kushagra as his replacement for the first two games. The wicketkeeper-batter has since linked up with the T20I squad as an injury replacement for Ishan Kishan, who is also ruled out of the 3rd T20I in Wellington with a right adductor strain.

Meanwhile, India A sits comfortably in the first unofficial Test with a 284-run lead in the second innings, thanks to a marathon 199 from Devdutt Padikkal. The Indian men’s T20I team is also leading New Zealand 2-0 in the five-match T20I series.