Umesh Yadav taken for scans after calf injury: BCCI
Indian pacer Umesh Yadav has been taken for scans after sustaining a calf muscle injury during the Melbourne Test. The pacer hobbled off the field in the middle of the 8th over of the 2nd Australian innings.
He limped in the follow-through after bowling a ball and immediately called for medical attention. Mohammed Siraj completed the over for him.
A BCCI media statement has confirmed that it was a strain in the calf.
"Umesh Yadav complained of pain in his calf while bowling his 4th over and was assessed by the BCCI medical team. He is being taken for scans now" said the official statement.
Before the injury, Umesh Yadav had sent the opener Joe Burns packing with a crackerjack delivery. The ball pitched on the middle stump and wickedly swung away to take a feather edge of Burns' bat to the keeper.
India's pace resources are further depleted with Umesh Yadav's injury
Umesh Yadav got to play in the first two Tests of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy thanks to Ishant Sharma's injury. Another quick, Mohammed Shami, has also been ruled out of the series with a fracture in his arm. Mohammed Siraj then came in for Shami in the playing eleven.
Now, if Yadav's injury is ultimately found to be a serious one, India's fast-bowling resources will be stretched further. Currently, Navdeep Saini is India's only pacer on the bench. Shardul Thakur and T Natarajan have also stayed back with the team as nets bowlers, but they don't have proved red-ball records.
A mandatory 14-day quarantine Down Under means that flying in a replacement will be almost impossible.
Umesh Yadav has completed 14 games against Australia till now. He has an average of 37.53 for his 47 wickets against the Aussies. In the first match of this series in Adelaide, he took 3 crucial wickets in the first innings.
In the ongoing game, India's decision to go with 5 bowlers has proved beneficial as Ravindra Jadeja is now covering the pacer's overs.