Rai to miss second ODI against New Zealand

New Delhi, Oct 18: Star batsman Suresh Rai will miss the second One-Day Intertiol (ODI) against New Zealand to be played here on Thursday as the southpaw is still recovering from a bout of viral fever.

After thrashing the Kiwis 3-0 in the Test series, India have now taken on the visitors in a five-match ODI series.

The hosts won the first match at the picturesque Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) stadium in Dharamsala by six wickets last Sunday to take a 1-0 lead in the series.

"The BCCI medical team has confirmed that Suresh Rai, who is recovering from a bout of viral fever and had missed the Dharamsala ODI, is ruled out of the second ODI of the PayTm ODI Trophy against New Zealand," the board said in a statement on Tuesday. "The team magement has allowed Suresh Rai more time to recover. There will be no replacement in the team."

The third and fourth ODIs will be played at Mohali (October 23) and Ranchi (October 26) respectively.

The fil match will be hosted at Vizag on October 29. IANS