Indian batter Shreyas Iyer, who is under criticism for his poor run of form in Test cricket, is likely to miss the rest of the ongoing Test series against England after injury issues. Iyer played the first two Tests but hasn’t been able to impress with his batting.
In the two Tests, he has scores of 35, 13, 27 and 29 runs. Despite being considered one of the best players of spin in India, Iyer has found himself struggling against the turning ball and his weakness against short-pitch bowling by pacers has been exposed once again.
Meanwhile, the report has suggested that Shreyas Iyer might not play in the rest of the Test series, after complaining of stiffness in the back and pain in the groin area while playing forward defence.
The doubt was further solidified as the playing kits of the entire squad for the second Test were flown from Vizag directly to Rajkot, the venue of the third Test that begins on February 15, but Iyer’s kit was sent to his home in Mumbai.
Sources said Iyer will be sent to the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bangalore for further tests but the batsman hopes to return to competitive cricket by the time IPL 2024 begins. Iyer is set to captain the Kolkata Knight Riders franchise in the tournament.
“Iyer has informed the Indian team management and the medical staff that his back gets stiff after playing more than 30 balls and he feels pain in his groin while playing forward defence. Post surgery, he is facing this issue for the first time so he has been advised to rest for a few weeks. He will head to NCA later,” a source told The Indian Express.
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If he does miss out, the selection committee will have to take a call on his replacement as KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja, who missed out on the last Test due to injury, are expected to be back for the Rajkot Test.
It remains to be seen whether Rajat Patidar, who debuted in the Vizag Test, would get a chance to play in place of Shreyas Iyer, or if selectors give a chance to Sarfaraz Khan.
The selection committee was scheduled to pick the team on Thursday but decided to wait for one more day to confirm the availability of former captain Virat Kohli. While it seems Kohli might not play in the third Test, the selectors wanted to know whether he will be available for the last two Test matches.
The rest of the squad, which is on a short break, has been asked to assemble in Rajkot on February 11 and training will resume the following day.
(Indian Express inputs)
