Is Suryakumar Yadav playing today’s IND vs NZ match of 2023 World Cup?

All-rounder Hardik Pandya's injury has opened up a spot in India's playing XI. Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan are the two batting options available on the bench in the current World Cup squad. It is a huge void to fill in the Indian playing XI for the match against New Zealand.

Pandya suffered a left ankle injury while trying to stop the ball in his followthrough while bowling during the match against Bangladesh on Thursday. He had only bowled three balls before that and limped off the field following the incident. He did not return to the field again during the match.

After the scans, he was ruled out of the match against New Zealand. There is no like-for-like replacement for him in the squad, as he is the only international-level fast-bowling all-rounder India has at the moment. In his absence, the team will not have the extra cushion of a sixth bowling option.

Suryakumar Yadav has endured a lean patch of form for the majority of this year in ODI cricket. However, the team management backed him due to his potential, as he has performed exceptionally well in T20I cricket across different conditions for the last few years. He found his footing in ODIs and repaid the faith by hitting two half-centuries against Australia just before the World Cup.

Due to his superior abilities in the finishing department in the middle-order, Suryakumar Yadav has got the nod ahead of Ishan Kishan as a replacement for Hardik Pandya. It is going to be World Cup debut for Surya.

Shardul Thakur also misses out as India has opted to reinforce their pace department with the inclusion of Mohammed Shami. Team India captain Rohit Sharma won the toss and opted to bowl first in the contest. He said:

"We will bowl first. No particular reason. We were here yesterday and there was a bit of dew starting to come in pretty early. It looks like a good pitch and it won't change much, so we want to back our strength and chase."

"It's quite important for us to keep the momentum going. Every day presents a fresh opportunity. Such is the nature of this tournament, any team can beat anyone. We have to make sure we get the job done. (Dharamsala) This is the place everyone wants to come and play. One of our favorite stadiums. Exciting game. Two changes. Hardik and Shardul miss out. We've got Mohammed Shami and Suryakumar Yadav."

---

India playing XI for today's 2023 World Cup match:

Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj

---

New Zealand playing XI for today's 2023 World Cup match:

Devon Conway, Will Young, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Latham (c & wk), Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Mitchell Santner, Matt Henry, Lockie Ferguson, Trent Boult