New Zealand National Cricket Team vs India National Cricket Team: India all-rounder Axar Patel is ruled out of the second T20I against New Zealand here on Thursday after sustaining a finger injury in the series opener in Nagpur, January 23, 2026. The 32-year-old injured his finger while attempting to field a smash from Daryl Mitchell. He walked off the field before completing his final over, with part-timer Abhishek Sharma finishing the over.

India captain Suryakumar Yadav confirmed the injury at the toss and announced two changes to the lineup. India captain Suryakumar Yadav confirmed the injury at the toss and announced two changes to the lineup.  We have two changes - Axar is missing out because he got hit in the last game. And Bumrah is resting tonight. So Harshit and Kuldeep come in, SKY said.  

In the Nagpur opener, Axar had a quiet outing. He scored five runs off five balls and conceded 42 runs in 3.3 overs, but claimed the crucial wicket of Glenn Phillips, who was well set on 78.

India won the toss and opted to bowl first as they seek a 2-0 lead in the five-match series.

India vs New Zealand 2nd T20I  Playing XIs 

New Zealand (Playing XI): Devon Conway, Tim Seifert(w), Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, Mitchell Santner(c), Zakary Foulkes, Matt Henry, Ish Sodhi, Jacob Duffy

India (Playing XI): Sanju Samson(w), Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy