Ahead of the 3rd Test scheduled to begin from 7Th January at the Sydney Cricket Ground, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) issued a statement on Tuesday informing that KL Rahul will not be a part of the remaining Test matches against Australia. Rahul was part of the ODI and T20 matches but was yet to feature in a Test in the ongoing series.
The release stated, “KL Rahul sprained his left wrist while batting in the nets at the MCG during Team India’s practice session on Saturday. The wicketkeeper-batsman will not be available for the remaining two Tests of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy as he will need about three weeks’ time to recover completely and regain full strength.”
“He will now return to India and head to the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru for further rehabilitation of his injury,” it concluded.
Rahul’s addition to India’s ‘injured XI’ comes following the exclusion of pacers Umesh Yadav and Mohd. Shami owing to injury. While Yadav picked up a niggle in the 2nd Test at Melbourne, Shami got hit on his bowling arm in the first Test at Adelaide. The players have been sent to the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore for rehabilitation.
While Rohit Sharma’s inclusion in the remaining Tests is certain, India won’t have any other option to try out. If one between Mayank Agarwal or Hanuma Vihari is benched, it will come down to Prithvi Shaw, who was axed from the Melbourne Test owing to poor batting in the opening Test.
On a different note, there’s a humdrum in the Indian contingent as they have expressed their reluctance to fly to Brisbane for the 4th Test. Owing to strict Covid-19 protocols, India might have to be under stricter quarantine.
Cricbuzz quoted a source inside the team, “If you look at it, we were quarantining for 14 days in Dubai before landing in Sydney and doing so for another 14 days. That means we were in a hard bubble for nearly a month before coming out. What we don’t want now is to quarantine again at the end of the tour.”
