Injuries to KL Rahul, Jaydev Unadkat scare Team India for WTC final Cricket News
Lucknow Super Giants Captain and opening batsman of India KL Rahul and his team’s experienced left-arm seamer Jaydev Unadkat He appears to have suffered serious injuries that could make him a suspect for the high-profile WTC Final,
Team India’s senior wicketkeeper-batsman Rahul suffered an injury to his right thigh during the IPL match against Royal Challengers Bangalore in Lucknow on Monday.
A day before the game, his teammate Unadkat slipped badly while bowling at the nets and as a result his entire body weight fell on his left shoulder.
Unadkat was writhing in pain and the team physio was seen applying an ice pack to the injured area. It is still not known whether this is a disorder and whether it needs to be reported National Cricket Academy,
With the help of the team physio and a teammate in reserve, Rahul limped off the field. He was finding it difficult to walk and lay on the ground writhing in pain for some time after what seemed like a hamstring strain while chasing the ball towards the boundary.
He first grabbed his right thigh and limped before falling to the ground.
The injury struck on the last ball of the second over when Faf du Plessis punched a Marcus Stoinis delivery through the extra cover region and Rahul ran in to save an impending boundary. It was vice-captain Krunal Pandya who took over the responsibility of opening alongside Ayush Badoni along with Kyle Mayers.
The extent of both the injuries is yet to be known as he did not come out to bat and TV cameras showed him sitting in the dressing room. He looked in a lot of pain and was seen applying some ointment to the injured area.
If it is a quadriceps muscle strain and not a strain, then his participation in the final of the World Test Championship, where he is the wicket-keeping option, could be in jeopardy.
Replacement Options: Arshdeep, Yashasvi, Kishan
If Rahul has a grade 1 or 2 quadriceps injury, he could be out for six to eight weeks, but in that case, Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid will have to see what is required.
The Indian team has not made its stand-by list official for the WTC final.
Kona Bharat has always been his first choice and not Rahul. He can strengthen the batting by walking in form Yashasvi JaiswalWho has a double century in Irani Cup.
The other top-order substitute is Abhimanyu Easwaran while keeping the substitutes is Ishan Kishan, who has been dropped initially as Rahul is in the squad of 15.
If Unadkat sustains a dislocation, he could be out for a good period of two months and the only quality left-arm option available to the team management is Arshdeep Singh, who is due to play for English county Kent after June. IPL over.
The other options are the right-handed batsmen – Mukesh Kumar and Navdeep Saini – but they will also be in the reckoning as will Umesh Yadav (dodgy hamstring) and Shardul Thakur (unknown niggle).
(With PTI inputs)
