Written By: Satata Karmakar | Published : January 16, 2026 11:59 AM IST
Rishabh Pant Injury Update: Indian Wicket-Keeper Diagnosed With Oblique Muscle Tear, Ruled Out of ODI Series - How Serious Is His Condition?
Rishabh Pant Injury Update: Indian wicket-keeper batter Rishabh Pant has been ruled out of the ongoing ODI series after being diagnosed with an oblique muscle tear, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) confirmed earlier this week.
In an official statement, BBCI said, "Pant was taken for MRI scans immediately and the BCCI Medical Team had a detailed discussion with an expert on his clinical and radiological findings. Pant has been diagnosed with a side strain (Oblique Muscle Tear) and is subsequently ruled out of the ODI Series."
The Men's Selection Committee has named Dhruv Jurel as Pant's replacement, and Jurel has linked up with the squad.
India's updated ODI squad: Shubman Gill (C), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul (WK), Shreyas Iyer (VC), Washington Sundar, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohd Siraj, Harshit Rana, Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Yadav, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Arshdeep Singh, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel (WK).
Wicket-keeper Rishabh Pant felt a sudden onset of discomfort in his right lateral abdominal area while batting in the nets during India's practice session on Saturday afternoon at the BCA Stadium, Vadodara. He was immediately rushed to the hospital, where he underwent MRI that helped the doctors figure out that Pant is dealing with a critical form of side strain - medically known as an oblique muscle tear.
In this article, we understand the seriousness of this condition and the rehabilitation process required to recover quickly from such critical sports injuries.
The American Journal of Sports Medicine notes that while injuries are common in professional sport, an oblique muscle tear is considered particularly concerning for cricketers due to the intense rotational and explosive movements involved in batting, throwing, and keeping wickets.
The obliques are the muscles running down either side of the abdomen. An acute discomfort or pain in these muscles can occur during activities that include twisting movements by the body. There are mainly two different types of oblique muscles, namely - external and internal obliques.
While the external obliques sit on the outer edge of the abdomen, the internal obliques sit directly next to them, closer to the core. What is so critical about these injuries? Both the muscles work together when people twist or rotate their bodies at the core, therefore, pain or discomfort in these muscles can lead to reduced body movements. And for sports personalities, especially wicket-keepers, this is the worst nightmare to deal with.
Injury to the internal obliques can also occur when performing certain throwing, twisting, or swinging motions that overextend the muscle and cause tears.
As per experts, such injuries are not fatal, but can turn worse if proper care is not taken on the time. Proper rest, regulated body movements, and medicines can help recover from such injuries.
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