India captain Suryakumar Yadav confirmed that wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan will replace the injured Tilak Varma in the batting order for the opening T20I against New Zealand in Nagpur. The decision was not straightforward for the team management, with both Kishan and Shreyas Iyer emerging as strong contenders to fill the vacant No.3 slot.
Tilak Varma’s injury and subsequent surgery created a significant void in India’s T20I batting lineup, ruling him out of the first three matches of the series against the Blackcaps. While Ishan Kishan was already named in the squad prior to Varma’s injury, Shreyas Iyer was drafted in later as a replacement.
Explaining the call, Suryakumar noted that Kishan is part of India’s plans for the 2026 T20 World Cup, whereas Iyer has been included as a short-term replacement. On that basis, the skipper felt Kishan deserved the opportunity in the opening game.
“Ishan Kishan will bat at No.3 as he deserves to play since he is part of the World Cup team,” Suryakumar Yadav said during the pre-match press conference (via PTI).
“Obviously you can’t do anything about injuries (Washington Sundar and Tilak Verma) so it will be an opportunity for new player and I wish him all the best,” he added.
Ishan Kishan was drafted into India’s T20I squad in place of Shubman Gill following the team’s 3-1 home series victory over South Africa. The selectors rewarded the wicketkeeper-batter after his standout 2025–26 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy season, where he finished as the tournament’s leading run-scorer and captained Jharkhand to a historic championship triumph.
Ishan Kishan last featured in a T20I over two years ago
The opening T20I against New Zealand is poised to bring Ishan Kishan’s prolonged wait to an end, with his previous appearance in the format coming during India’s home series against Australia in November 2023. In that match, he was dismissed for a five-ball duck by Kane Richardson. Notably, Kishan had batted at No.3 in that series too, while Ruturaj Gaikwad and Yashasvi Jaiswal opened the innings.
In T20Is, Kishan has accumulated 58 runs from four innings at the No.3 position. He is also familiar with the role from his IPL stints, having batted at No.3 for both Mumbai Indians and Sunrisers Hyderabad.
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