India’s stand-in captain Ajinkya Rahane confirmed that Shreyas Iyer will make his Test debut in the first Test match against New Zealand, at Kanpur on 25 November. Iyer is set to become India’s 303rd men's cricketer in this format.
The decision came after K.L. Rahul was ruled out of the series due to a muscle strain on his left thigh a day ago. ‘Shreyas is going to make his debut. Unfortunately, KL is injured and will not be a part of the Test matches. So, Shreyas will make his debut tomorrow,’ Rahane told in the pre-match press conference.
Iyer has aggregated 4,592 runs in 54 first-class matches at an average of 52.18. He is likely to bat at No. 4 in lieu of Virat Kohli, who has opted out of the Test match, or at No. 5, if Rahane decides to move up one place like he did in Australia earlier this year.
‘We are not too sure of the combination. But in India you generally get spin-friendly wickets, the ball generally keeps slightly low and slow. We expect that but are not too sure how the wicket will play. We will have to wait till tomorrow and assess from there,’ added Rahane.