Injured India wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan has been ruled out of the third T20I against New Zealand, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) confirmed on Monday.The 28-year-old sustained a low grade right adductor strain during the first T20I of the series against New Zealand last week. “He is yet to regain match fitness and is ruled out of the third T20I to be played on October 27, 2026 in Wellington. The BCCI Medical Team is monitoring Ishan's progress,” the BCCI said in a post on ‘X’. “Kumar Kushagra will continue to be with the team for the third T20I.”
Kishan's absence could see 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi retain his place at No. 3 and Sanju Samson continue as wicketkeeper.
India will look to wrap up the five-match T20I series when they take on New Zealand in the third match, having won both the opening games by four wickets. The visitors were pushed hard in the series opener in Christchurch after New Zealand posted 225/4, powered by Glenn Phillips' unbeaten 82. India, however, pulled off a successful chase, reaching the target with two balls to spare, with Samson scoring an unbeaten 67.The second T20I followed a similar pattern, with India finding themselves under pressure during the chase. After restricting New Zealand to 180/5, the visitors slumped to 70/5 before Tilak Varma stepped up with a match-winning knock. Tilak remained unbeaten on 51 off 26 balls and helped India chase the target.
The win in the third T20I would give India an unassailable 3-0 lead and seal the series with two matches still to play. New Zealand, meanwhile, will be desperate to bounce back and keep the contest alive. The five-match T20I series will be followed by five ODIs and two Tests against New Zealand, with the Test series forming part of the 2025-27 World Test Championship (WTC) cycle.