Shreyas Iyer’s return to the India squad remains under a cloud, though the ODI vice-captain has started batting at nets at the Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru.
The top-order batter has been out of action since suffering a spleen injury in Australia during the Sydney ODI in October while attempting a diving catch in the outfield.
It is understood that he could make himself available for Mumbai’s Vijay Hazare Trophy match against Maharashtra on Saturday and a call on his fitness will be taken thereafter. He is expected to inform the Mumbai Cricket Association of his plans in the next couple of days.
All of that is subject to Shreyas receiving the necessary clearance from the
CoE on his participation in the tournament, sources told The Telegraph.
The selection of the squad for the ODI series against New Zealand is likely to take place on January 4 or 5 and Shreyas wants to prove his fitness ahead of that.
The three ODIs are on January 11 (in Baroda), January 14 (Rajkot) and January 18 (Indore).
The focus is obviously on the T20 World Cup in February-March and it is almost certain that Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya will be rested for the ODI series. The duo, however, has already been included in the T20I squad for the five matches against the Black Caps beginning in Nagpur from January 21.
The idea is to monitor their workload and ensure that they stay fit ahead of the ICC showpiece event.
Pandya has not played an ODI since the Champions Trophy final in March due to injury-related issues. Bumrah too last featured in an ODI in the 2023 World Cup final in Ahmedabad.
Yashasvi Jaiswal, who has been rested for the Vijay Hazare because of acute gastroenteritis, is likely to return to the Mumbai squad for Wednesday’s match against Goa. He is also likely to feature in the ODI squad subject to passing the fitness parameters.
Keeping dilemma
The selectors seem to be in a Catch-22 situation on the wicketkeeper’s slot.
KL Rahul, who led the side in the series against South Africa following the absence of Shubman Gill and Shreyas, is the first-choice wicketkeeper in the side.
But Rishabh Pant, who was a part of the squad in the last series but didn’t get to play a match, will face stiff competition from Ishan Kishan who has roared back to form, resulting in a call-up for the T20 World Cup.
Ishan remains on the selectors’ radar, but not all are willing to try him out in the series against New Zealand since they do not want to disturb the T20 World Cup combination.
Pant was overlooked for the ODI leg in Australia, when Dhruv Jurel received his maiden call-up in the format. Pant featured alongside Jurel in the series against South Africa, but both ended up warming the bench.
Given his potential, Pant deserves a chance and the selectors are apparently not on the same page about sidelining the supremely talented Delhi keeper.