Shikhar Dhawan doing fine despite blow to ribs

India's Shikhar Dhawan reacts after being hit by a ball during the second one day international (ODI) cricket match of a three-match series between India and Australia at Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot. Pic/ AFP

Rajkot: Senior India opener Shikhar Dhawan was hit on the rib cage by a Pat Cummins bouncer while batting in the second ODI against Australia, here on Friday. While Dhawan didn't take the field for the entire duration of the Australian innings, the Indian team management is confident that he will be available for the final ODI in Bengaluru. It couldn't be ascertained whether Dhawan has had a precautionary scan to detect the extent of injury. Incidentally, it was a Cummins bouncer in the first game that had left Rishabh Pant concussed and out of the second match after being rushed to hospital for a precautionary CT scan.

"Shikhar Dhawan got hit on the rib-cage on his right side. He will not be taking the field today. Yuzvendra Chahal is in as his substitute," a BCCI stated during interval. However the word from team management after the match was that Dhawan is "doing fine" and there is no problems as such. Dhawan was hit in the 10th over of the Indian innings. While he was in considerable pain and needed medical attention, he decided to carry on batting, scoring a fluent 96 in India's total of 340 for six.

Ironically, it was against Australia in the World Cup that Dhawan had sustained a fractured thumb after being hit by a rising delivery from Nathan Coulter-Nile. Call it a coincidence, Dhawan was also the top-scorer in that game when he scored 117 in India's easy victory. But the fractured thumb ruled him out of the tournament for good and was out for two months.

He came back against West Indies and had a lean patch before sustaining a deep cut on his knee during a Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy game. He had to be rushed to a medical facility where he required 27 stitches and was out for another month. The left-hander made a comeback in the domestic cricket, scoring a hundred for Delhi against Hyderabad in a Ranji Trophy game in seaming conditions.

Just when he got his mojo back with three successive half-centuries, the 34-year-old is now facing another injury scare. It is expected that Dhawan will be taken for a precautionary scan to detect if he has had a rib fracture which could mean another lengthy break from the game.

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