India were hit with a concern when star all-rounder Axar Patel walked off the field mid-way during his final over in the first T20I against New Zealand at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium, Nagpur, on Wednesday, January 21.
Axar returned to the Indian side after missing the ODI series against the Kiwis, as he looks to stay in the groove for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2026. However, the star all-rounder suffered a blow as he split his finger while bowling in the second innings of the clash in Nagpur.
Axar was hit off by a fierce stroke from Daryl Mitchell in the 16th over of the chase as he tried stopping a ball from the New Zealand all-rounder. He stuck his left hand out as the ball hit his finger and flew away to the boundary for a four. He went off the field with bleeding on his left index finger as Abhishek Sharma came to complete the over.
However, there might not be much of a concern as it was not a web splitting and just a finger splitting, which might not take long to heal. India will be playing New Zealand for the second T20I on Friday, January 21.
India beat New Zealand in first T20I
India made light work of New Zealand in the first T20I with both batters and bowlers putting up brilliant performances in the team’s huge win in Nagpur on Wednesday, January 21.
Led by Abhishek Sharma, the hosts piled up a huge score of 238/7 as they punished the New Zealand bowlers. Abhishek slammed a jaw-dropping 84 from 35 balls, laced with five fours and eight sixes, as he completed his 5000 runs in T20 cricket. Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya also contributed, with the skipper making 32 and the latter scoring 25. The bowlers complemented the batters well with regular strikes as New Zealand were never in the chase despite a strong 78 from Glenn Phillips.
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