Team India’s batting department was jolted significantly during the India vs New Zealand 4th T20I, which kicked off on Wednesday evening in Visakhapatnam, as in-form batsman Ishan Kishan was absent from this game.
With India leading the series 3-0, captain Suryakumar Yadav won the toss in Vizag and decided to bowl first. Suryakumar explained that dew was the key reason for his decision to bowl first as India look to go 4-0 up in this five-match IND vs NZ T20I series.
While India have sealed this series, the remainder of the matches provide the players with more game time ahead of the exciting ICC T20 World Cup 2026, which commences on February 7.
With Suryakumar coming back to form in this series, the only Indian player who will need some more confidence going into the showpiece ICC tournament next month remains Sanju Samson, who has not lit up this series in three attempts.
With Kishan firing on all cylinders, it’s even possible that India may replace Samson with Kishan as an opener when Tilak Varma returns to the side.
However, Samson will get opportunities in this series at least, while Kishan missed the 4th T20I.
IND vs NZ: Why Is Ishan Kishan Not Playing Today In 4th T20I In Visakhapatnam?
Captain Suryakumar revealed that Ishan Kishan is not playing in the 4th T20I because he picked up a niggle in the 3rd T20I. Arshdeep Singh, who was rested in the previous match, returned to the side, replacing Kishan. This change meant that India had added an extra bowling option while sacrificing a batting slot.
Kishan has been in an imperious form recently. After leading Jharkhand to the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, in which he slammed a century in the final, he was picked for India’s squad to face New Zealand and for the T20 World Cup as the selectors dropped Shubman Gill.
In Tilak’s absence, Kishan got a place at No. 3 in the IND vs NZ T20I series. The left-hander has shown great intent in three innings, recording scores of 8 (5), 76 (32), and 28 (13).
Overall, in three innings against New Zealand, Kishan has blasted 112 runs off 50 balls, walloping runs at a strike rate of 224.
Meanwhile, Suryakumar also informed that Axar Patel has not yet recovered from the injury that has kept him out of the series so far but hinted at the all-rounder’s return in the next game.
New Zealand skipper Mitchell Santner announced one change to his side: Kyle Jamieson is being rested, and in comes Zakary Foulkes.
IND vs NZ 4th T20I Teams:
New Zealand: Mitchell Santner (c), Tim Seifert (wk), Mark Chapman, Matt Henry, Glenn Phillips, Daryl Mitchell, Zakary Foulkes, Devon Conway, Ish Sodhi, Rachin Ravindra, Jacob Duffy
India: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Sanju Samson (wk), Arshdeep Singh, Abhishek Sharma, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Shivam Dube, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravi Bishnoi
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