Rishabh Pant to undergo second fitness test after failing Bengaluru assessment ahead of New Zealand Tests

India wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant failed a fitness assessment at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru on Sunday, November 1, and will undergo a second evaluation as he aims to be available for India's two-Test series in New Zealand.

Pant is recovering from a side strain sustained while captaining Rest of India against Jammu and Kashmir in the Irani Cup in Srinagar earlier in October; he has been in rehabilitation at the BCCI Centre of Excellence since October 23. The injury forced him to miss the first two unofficial Tests between India A and New Zealand A. The wicketkeeper-batter has reportedly resumed batting and wicketkeeping drills but has not yet received medical clearance to return to competitive cricket. His participation in the New Zealand series is therefore contingent on the outcome of the forthcoming fitness assessment.

India’s management view Pant’s availability as important because of his record in overseas conditions; he has scored Test centuries in England, Australia and South Africa and is noted in the report for an attacking approach in the middle order. The article states that his absence would be a setback for India given that overseas record.

Pant is considered unlikely to play in India A’s third unofficial Test against New Zealand A, scheduled for Lincoln from November 7 to 10, with the team management preferring to give him extra recovery time and potentially have him join the senior squad directly in Wellington. "There is very little chance that Pant will play the third unofficial Test against New Zealand A. The team management might want to give him a few days more to recover and join the team for the Test series and train in Wellington. There will be clarity after his second fitness test," a BCCI source told PTI on conditions of anonymity.

The selectors included Pant in India's squad for the New Zealand Tests subject to fitness clearance. For the first two India A matches, Kumar Kushagra was named as his replacement, while Dhruv Jurel has been part of the A-team setup. The report adds that the medical team is unlikely to rush Pant back into action, with his long-term fitness treated as a priority.

If Pant clears the second assessment he could travel to New Zealand and join the senior squad in time for the opening Test. The first Test is scheduled to be played at the Basin Reserve in Wellington from November 19 to 23, while the second Test is set for the Hagley Oval in Christchurch from November 27 to December 1.

The outcome of Pant’s second fitness test will determine whether he joins the India squad ahead of the opening Test at the Basin Reserve from November 19 to 23.