Former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan announced his ODI eleven for the opening match of the New Zealand ODI series. The cricketer, who has been a great servant of Indian cricket at times, did not pick KL Rahul in the XI and chose Rishabh Pant instead.
India will host New Zealand for an intense series in 2026 as they begin their cricket schedule for the year on January 11. They have already made headlines for controversial selections, including leaving out centurion Ruturaj Gaikwad, and instead, including a number of controversial selections.
The upcoming series has been branded as a big opportunity for wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant, who has been out of the team for quite some time, as he may get his first game after many years. He was a part of the Indian team but did not play a single match in the ODI format in 2025.
KL Rahul sidelined; Rishabh Pant returns to ODI after a brilliant performance in the domestic season.
With the New Zealand series approaching, Irfan Pathan has picked a probable playing XI that contains a number of surprises, and the biggest among them is the omission of star wicketkeeper KL Rahul from the squad. This batsman had captained India in the absence of Shubman Gill in the last series against South Africa.
Shubman Gill will return as the team captain, along with vice-captain Shreyas Iyer, who has recovered from the injury that ruled him out of the South Africa series. Instead, Ruturaj Gaikwad was also dropped from the team, making way for a specialist batsman in the middle order.
Rishabh Pant has been waiting for his chance since 2024, when he played his last ODI against Sri Lanka. His performance in the Vijay Hazare Trophy was excellent and he also scored a few half-centuries. Whereas KL Rahul was not a part of the Vijay Hazare Trophy season.
Irfan Pathan names three all-rounders in the Indian lineup
While choosing the team, no selector or even Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir would have imagined making all three all-rounders a part of the playing eleven. However, Pathan included all three all-rounders Washington Sundar, Ravindra Jadeja and Nitish Kumar Reddy to add depth and stability to the squad.
Pathan’s suggestion seems very unlikely, as he feels that Kuldeep Yadav should also be selected and he will replace either Harshit Rana or Arshdeep Singh. For India, it is more likely that Reddy or Sundar will play as the second all-rounder in the team.
A situation may also arise when Rishabh Pant may play in the middle order as a specialist batsman, while KL Rahul will be in the team as the wicketkeeper of the Indian team.
Irfan Pathan predicts India’s playing XI for 1st New Zealand ODI
Rishabh Pant has featured in only one ODI since the unfortunate accident in 2022, while he has also won the Champions Trophy without winning a game, as KL Rahul has held the spot since CWC 2023. Pant has been featured in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and will play the next two rounds before traveling to Vadodara to join the Indian team.
Irfan Pathan chose his playing eleven on his YouTube channel, “Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana/Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh/Kuldeep Yadav and Mohammed Siraj.”
Also read: Irfan Pathan brutally targets Jasprit Bumrah, names Mohammed Shami’s permanent replacement
