Prithvi Shaw's scan results reveal Grade 2 PCL injury; will not require surgery - Reports
Opening batter Prithvi Shaw's recent setback has been diagnosed as a Grade 2 Posterior Cruciate Ligament (PCL) injury and will not require surgery as part of the treatment. He had sustained the injury during his recent stint with Northamptonshire in England.
Shaw was taken off the ground after injuring himself while fielding and his time with the English county team effectively ended there due to the severity of the injury. Initial reports claimed that he has sustained an injury to his Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL). Such an injury would have made surgery inevitable and ruled him out for the next six to nine months.
However, according to a report by Cricket Next, Shaw has a Grade 2 PCL injury and will undergo initial treatment in the United Kingdom itself.
A source close to the cricketer said:
“The result of the scans has revealed that it’s a Grade 2 PCL injury. Grade 2 is not that encouraging but still better than Grade 3. Things were initially not looking good for Prithvi but Grade 2 injury and no need of surgery means he should be back on the field soon."
“Initially, we thought he could return to the National Cricket Academy (NCA) or home in Mumbai but he will be there in UK for some time at least," the source added.
After being snubbed from Team India's squads for the Caribbean tour and the Ireland series, Shaw played in the Royal One-Day Cup to maintain his form and fitness. On his debut, he fell over the stumps and was adjudged hit-wicket, but made amends in the next set of matches.
He scored an imperious 244 in his side's win over Somerset and followed it up with an unbeaten century during the win over Durham as well. Several criticized his fitness recently, but Northamptonshire head coach John Sadler was full of praise for the talented batter.
Sadler said following the end of Shaw's stint with the county team:
“In his short stint Prithvi has made a huge impact on us as a club. It’s a huge shame he won’t be with us for the remainder of this competition. He’s an extremely humble young man, he’s very respectful and had been so grateful for the opportunity to represent Northamptonshire."
Shaw became one of the handful of Indian cricketers to have a first-class triple ton, List A double hundred, and a T20 century with his performances in recent times.
Shaw expected to be ruled out for six to eight weeks
According to fitness coaches and medical experts, Grade 2 PCL injuries normally take up to two months to heal, but it comes across as a blessing in disguise as it could easily have been an ACL injury that could have kept him out of action for a prolonged period.
Shaw was selected for Team India's home series against New Zealand earlier this year after his exceptional red-ball display in the domestic circuit.
However, he could not get an opportunity in the playing XI and had a horrid 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) season with the Delhi Capitals (DC) to follow up. Shaw scored only 106 runs in eight innings at a strike rate of 124.71.