IPL 2020 News: Ishant Sharma likely to miss first part of the tournament; NCA physio under the scanner
What's the story?
India and Delhi Capitals fast bowler Ishant Sharma is likely to miss the first phase of IPL 2020 after picking up an ankle injury during the ongoing New Zealand versus India Test series.
Sharma was suffering with an ankle problem prior to the series as well. However, the National Cricket Academy (NCA) cleared him to play for India. Hence, NCA head physio Ashish Kaushik is facing heat from the BCCI.
The background
Although he is not a regular figure in the Indian limited overs squads, Sharma has been a premier fast bowler in Test cricket for India. Unfortunately, he had injured his right ankle while playing a domestic game and was rushed to the NCA. The injury initially ruled him out of the Test series against New Zealand. However, the pacer recovered quickly and landed in New Zealand just 72 hours before the first Test.
He picked up a five-wicket haul in Wellington but his ankle injury kept him out of the ongoing second Test. It is now being learnt that he may miss the first part of IPL 2020 in case he has to undergo rehabilitation at the NCA.
The heart of the matter
As reported by PTI on Saturday (29th February), a BCCI insider has questioned the credibility of NCA's decision and stated:
"Once Ishant was ruled out for six weeks by the Delhi team physio after his scan reports revealed Grade 3, how did Kaushik and the NCA team come to conclusion that three weeks is good enough for return to competitive cricket?"
The other question surrounding this situation is that whether Sharma himself pushed the NCA officials to declare him fit. Also, another query is how did the lanky pacer land in the Indian team directly without playing a competitive match, which is the standard procedure for every contracted player returning from injury.
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What's next?
While the seriousness of the injury is not known yet, Delhi Capitals will receive a major blow if the 31-year-old Indian fast bowler is not available for the first few games.