03 November,2016 01:09 PM IST | | Subodh Mayure
Rohit Sharma's Test career suffered yet another jolt yesterday when it was announced that the Mumbai batsman will miss the five-Test series against England at home due to a thigh injury on his right leg
Rohit Sharma
Rohit Sharma
Rohit Sharma's Test career suffered yet another jolt yesterday when it was announced that the Mumbai batsman will miss the five-Test series against England at home due to a thigh injury on his right leg.
The 29-year-old batting stylist, who scored three half centuries in the recently-concluded Test series against New Zealand, sustained the injury during the fifth and final one-day international at Visakhapatnam where he took 70 off the Kiwis.
Also Read: India vs England: Hardik Pandya gets maiden call-up
England-bound?
According to chief selector MSK Prasad, Rohit needs six to eight weeks to recover and may have to undergo surgery. "We all saw on TV that Rohit was badly injured. He may be assessed in England," Prasad said at the press conference after picking Test squad yesterday.
BCCI's general manager, cricket operations Dr MV Sridhar explained: "The thigh (right) muscle tendon has been injured for which he will be assessed by specialists."
The Test series against England which kicks off in Rajkot next week would have been Rohit's first Test battle with the Englishmen on home soil. He has played only one Test against them - at the Rose Bowl in 2014 - when he was dismissed for 28 and 6.
Meanwhile, Mumbai's Ranji Trophy coach Chandrakant Pandit reckoned Rohit's injury is a big blow for India. "It's really unfortunate that a player like Rohit, who is in good form and performed very well against New Zealand has to sit out due to an injury. He is a very important player for India and the team will miss him," said Pandit.
'Rohit's been unlucky'
"If your are playing continuous cricket, injuries are bound to occur. It can happen to anybody, but for some players, they come thick and fast. It's very unfortunate. Hopefully, he will recover soon. It's good that the Indian board is considering sending Rohit to England for treatment. It shows the BCCI is concerned about important players," Pandit added.
India's injury woes are not restricted to Rohit. Batsmen KL Rahul (hamstring) and Shikhar Dhawan (thumb) are also on the injured list while Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who claimed five wickets in second Test against New Zealand at Kolkata, needs to get match fit after his hamstring injury.
