Back-to-back setbacks for Team India. After the IND vs NZ 2nd ODI in Rajkot, where India fell short against the visitors, it was learned that a star Indian all-rounder is ruled out of the upcoming India vs New Zealand T20I series due to injury. The 5-match bilateral T20I series will start on January 21. 

According to media reports, spin-bowling all-rounder Washington Sundar has been ruled out of the IND vs. NZ T20I series due to injury. Sundar was already knocked out of the ongoing One Day International contest. The all-rounder received the injury during the first ODI match of the ongoing series. He delivered 5 overs and got injured while doing the fielding. 

Ahead of the T20 World Cup 2026, Team India was hit by multiple injury blows. As Sundar is a key player in the T20 WC squad, his latest injury update is considered a major blow for the Men in Blue. For the ODIs, BCCI named Ayush Badoni as the replacement of Washington Sundar. Now, if the latest reports regarding Sundar's injury are to be believed, then the board will have to find a replacement for Sundar for the IND vs NZ T20I series as well. Despite all the media reports, an official confirmation from the BCCI is yet to come. 

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Washington Sundar ruled out of IND vs NZ T20I series 

Full schedule of the India vs. New Zealand T20I series:

• 1st T20I: January 21
• 2nd T20I, January 23
• 3rd T20I: January 25
• 4th T20I: January 28
• 5th T20I: January 31

Team India squad for the T20 World Cup 2026:

Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dubey, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, and Rinku Singh.