Jimmy Neesham ruled out of Kanpur Test with a rib injury

New Zealand have suffered their second major injury setback of their ongoing tour of India with fast-bowling all-rounder Jimmy Neesham ruled out of the opening Test to be played at the Green Park stadium in Kanpur from September 22.

Having already been deprived of the services of Tim Southee for the entire three-match Test series, the Black Caps will be hopeful that the rib injury that has forced out Neesham is not that serious.

Neesham was in the plans of skipper Kane Williamson, with the surface – for what would be India’s 500th Test match in history – expected to offer slight assistance to the fast bowlers. The news of the injury will come as a huge blow for Neesham who last played for the national team in November 2015 in a Test match against Australia at Brisbane.

Neesham suffered the injury on the eve of his side’s only warm-up match of the tour – the three-day game against reigning Ranji Trophy champions Mumbai that ended in a high-scoring draw. While the medical staff were hopeful that the bruising would heal in time for the Kanpur Test, the visitors thought it wise to give Neesham adequate rest rather than flaring up the injury.

"Jimmy was struck in the nets and has been in discomfort the last few days," New Zealand coach Mike Hesson said. "It will take a few days for the bruising to go away, but it's very much a short-term injury."

While New Zealand would be going ahead with only 14 players to choose from for the series opener, they do have adequate cover in the fast bowling department with Trent Boult, Neil Wagner and Matt Henry – Southee’s replacement for the Test leg of the tour – all available for selection. With the pitch expected to help the spinners as the match progresses, it would be highly surprising if the visitors head into the contest with more than two seam bowlers.

The spin duo of Ish Sodhi and Mitchell Santner, who did much damage to India during their World T20 encounter earlier this year, are certain to find a place in the playing eleven and it will be interesting to see how the visitors play out their team combination.

The Test kicks off a busy period for Virat Kohli’s side in the longest format of the game, with the hosts set to play as many as 14 Test matches during the 2016-17 season.

Indian Squad for the first Test: Virat Kohli (capt),Shikhar Dhawan, Murali Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Wriddhiman Saha(WK), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Amit Mishra, Ishant Sharma, Mohammad Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav

New Zealand Squad for the first Test: Kane Williamson (capt), Trent Boult, Doug Bracewell, Mark Craig, Martin Guptill, Tom Latham, Henry Nicholls, Luke Ronchi, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Ross Taylor, Neil Wagner, BJ Watling.