Pant set to join national team late after playing VHT match for Delhi: Report

New Delhi, Jan 6 Wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant is likely to join the Indian team for the ODI series against New Zealand late, as he has decided to continue to appear for Delhi in the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT) 2025-26, according to a news report.

Pant has, the report claimed, got permission to play the last league of the Vijay Hazare Trophy in Bengaluru on January 8 and will join the national team only after that, according to a report on Cricbuzz. India will be playing the first ODI match against New Zealand at Vadodara on January 11.

Pant is currently leading Delhi in the domestic 50-over competition, and his team is placed at the top of Group D with 20 points from six games. They will take on their final league fixture against Haryana and can join the national team at the latest on January 9, just two days before the first game.

"He (Pant) is very much here, and he will play the last game," Delhi coach Sarandeep Singh told Cricbuzz on Tuesday night.

Pant has been included in the ODI squad as the second wicketkeeper. K.L. Rahul has been the first-choice keeper of the Indian team since the domestic ODI series against England in February 2025.

Going by recent form, there was speculation that the selectors would pick Ishan Kishan as the second-choice wicket-keeper, but the selectors went with Pant as they felt that he had not gotten many chances in recent times.

Meanwhile, Shreyas Iyer, the vice-captain of the team, is also likely to join the squad a bit late. Iyer returned to action in the Vijay Hazare Trophy for Mumbai on Tuesday after recovering from the injury he suffered on the Australia tour in October last year.

Middle-order batter Iyer made a strong return from injury with a fluent 53-ball 82 for Mumbai against Himachal Pradesh.

Iyer was named vice-captain of the India squad for the three-match ODI series against New Zealand, starting in Vadodara on January 11. His inclusion in the series, however, is subject to a fitness clearance following his appearances in the Vijay Hazare Trophy for Mumbai.

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