Star Indian batter Rishabh Pant departed for New Zealand on November 13, 2026, and is set to link up with the Indian Test squad in Wellington on November 14. He has been cleared by the BCCI medical staff after recovering from a side strain that he sustained while captaining the Rest of India side during the Irani Cup in Srinagar between October 1 and 4.

Pant had been named in India’s Test squad for the New Zealand tour, subject to fitness clearance. However, the injury ruled him out of the first two four-day matches of the tour. He subsequently underwent rehabilitation at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru from October 23.

As reported by Cricinfo, his original plan was to travel in time for the third India A fixture, scheduled between November 7 and 10, but the BCCI medical team extended his rehabilitation programme after wanting more time to assess his readiness at the Centre of Excellence.

The three-match Test series opens in Wellington on November 19, with the second Test scheduled to begin in Christchurch on November 27. The series carries significant weight for India’s World Test Championship campaign, with South Africa and Australia also in contention ahead of the final.

How did India A perform in the warm-up matches before Pant’s arrival?

India A played five matches in New Zealand to prepare the squad for the Test series. Shubman Gill and KL Rahul were part of the India A setup alongside Anshul Kamboj during those fixtures against New Zealand A. Several players used the warm-up games to press their claims with strong performances.

Dhruv Jurel, who will serve as the reserve wicketkeeper in the Test squad, scored a half-century across four innings and also made a hundred against New Zealand A. Sai Sudharsan accumulated 88 runs across five innings, with scores of 91 among his contributions against the New Zealand A side. Devdutt Padikkal was equally productive, scoring 80 across five innings and registering a knock of 199 during the tour games against New Zealand A.

What does Pant’s return mean for India’s Test wicketkeeping plans?

With Pant now cleared and on his way to Wellington, he is expected to be available for selection from the first Test onward, which begins on November 19. Dhruv Jurel had been keeping wicket in his absence during the warm-up matches and produced solid returns with both bat and gloves.

Jurel’s hundred and consistent half-centuries across four innings against New Zealand A demonstrated his readiness, though Pant’s clearance means the senior wicketkeeper is in line to reclaim his place in the playing eleven. The BCCI had included Pant in the Test squad announced on October 17, with the fitness condition attached, and that condition has now been met.

India full squad for New Zealand Test series

Shubman Gill (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Devdutt Padikkal, Rishabh Pant (WK)*, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Anshul Kamboj, Jasprit Bumrah, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Sai Sudharsan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj

On November 12 2026, Becky Cummins uploaded a photograph to Instagram featuring Pat Cummins and their daughter Edith, captioning it ‘My loves’. The post surfaced within hours of a video circulating widely online that showed the couple in an animated conversation on the street outside their Bronte home in Sydney. Pat subsequently reshared the image on his Instagram Stories, though neither he nor Becky issued any statement connecting the post to the footage or clarifying what the exchange was about.

The video was filmed on November 11 2026 and captured the pair’s visible expressions and body language during a street-side interaction outside their Sydney residence. No audio was recorded, leaving the subject of the conversation entirely unknown. According to reports, the clip accumulated close to 50,000 shares across social media platforms before the family photograph appeared online.

What is the backdrop to the viral video?

The footage emerged at a moment of heightened scrutiny for Pat Cummins. Australia’s white-ball series against England was scheduled to begin on November 13 2026, with Cummins resting from the squad. At the same time, renewed attention had been directed at Australia’s 2018 ball-tampering scandal, widely known as Sandpapergate, after Usman Khawaja made fresh claims about the episode in his newly released memoir, Sabr. The combination of these circumstances placed the Cummins household under considerable public interest, though the animated exchange itself has not been connected to any confirmed cricket matter.

Becky, a British-born interior designer, crossed paths with Pat at a bar in Sydney’s King’s Cross district in 2013, at which point he was 20 years old. The couple spent close to nine years together before tying the knot in Byron Bay in August 2022. They are parents to two children: daughter Edith, who arrived in October 2021, and son Albie, born in February 2025.

What do we know about the Instagram post and the public reaction?

The timing of Becky’s Instagram post drew immediate attention given how closely it followed the viral clip. The photograph showed Pat alongside Edith and carried the caption ‘My loves’. Pat’s decision to reshare it on his Instagram Stories was widely noted, yet neither party offered any clarification on whether the upload was a deliberate response to the online speculation or simply a routine family moment shared publicly.

The video’s spread to close to 50,000 shares underlined the level of interest in the Cummins family at a time when Sandpapergate was again a live topic in Australian cricket circles. However, no verified information links the content of the animated exchange to the Khawaja memoir or any other specific matter. The exact subject of the conversation between Pat and Becky remains unconfirmed.

Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui hosts the fourth ODI of the ongoing five-match series between India and New Zealand on November 13, 2026, a day-night fixture that India can use to clinch the series after building a 2-0 lead. The third ODI was abandoned without a ball bowled, leaving the series at that margin heading into the Bay Oval contest.

Virat Kohli has appeared at this venue three times in ODIs, all against New Zealand, and has accumulated 112 runs across those innings off 131 balls at a strike rate of 85.49. His average at the ground stands at 37.33, with one half-century to his name from three visits. His highest score at Bay Oval is 60, which also remains his only fifty at the venue.

What are Kohli’s individual scores at Bay Oval?

Kohli’s two innings at Bay Oval during the January 2019 series produced scores of 43 and 60. India won both those matches, completing a 3-0 series sweep on that tour. The 43 came in the second ODI and the 60 in the third, with the latter representing his best effort at the ground.

His third appearance at Bay Oval came in February 2020, when he managed only 9 runs before being dismissed, caught by Kyle Jamieson off Hamish Bennett, having hit one six during that brief stay. That knock was part of a difficult New Zealand tour for Kohli, during which he finished with 75 runs across three ODIs at an average of 25. The match itself saw New Zealand successfully chase 297 to complete a series win.

Across the current 2026 series against New Zealand, Kohli scored 74 off 51 balls in the first ODI in Auckland, sharing a 113-run partnership with Shubman Gill. He followed that with 7 in the second ODI in Wellington, though India still won that game by four runs under the DLS method. His combined tally from the first two innings of the current series stands at 81 runs at a strike rate of 139.66.

What is Kohli’s overall ODI record against New Zealand?

Against New Zealand in ODIs, Kohli is the leading run-scorer in cricket, having accumulated 1,978 runs at an average of 56.51. Those figures underline a sustained record of performance against this opponent across multiple series and venues over many years.

Bay Oval represents just one chapter of that broader record. His scores of 43, 60 and 9 at the ground account for 112 of those 1,978 runs, with the venue having produced mixed returns compared to his overall numbers against New Zealand. The fourth ODI on November 13 gives Kohli another opportunity to add to his tally at a ground where his highest score remains 60.