Steve Smith joined the prolonging list of pullouts due to injury from Rising Pune Supergiants squad as the Australia captain has left the squad following a wrist injury. The franchise has signed up George Bailey, the former Australia Twenty20 and Kings XI Punjab skipper, for the remaining season.
Smith wasn’t just Supergiants’ lone centurion in the IPL but also its second highest-run getter, with a tally of 270 runs from seven innings. Bailey has been the second replacement player besides fellow-Australian Usman Khawaja. It remains to be seen if either of them joins the squad in time ahead of Supergiants’ next game, against Delhi Daredevils on May 5.
Supergiants have so far managed just two wins from their eight matches, leaving the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led team in danger of becoming the first team to have been ruled out of keeping itself in the race for the Play-offs.
ANI reports:
Meanwhile, Australia’s run of injuries continues as Kings XI Punjab batsman Shaun Marsh has been ruled out of the rest of IPL with a back injury.
The 32-year-old picked up the injury during his side’s six-wicket defeat against Kolkata Knight Riders on April 19.