Ravindra Jadeja’s selection for the ICC World Cup in Australia-New Zealand from February 14 has become uncertain following a shoulder injury he suffered while practising in Australia.
The experienced 26-year-old all-rounder provides perfect balance to the team in the shorter version of the game and his non-availability for selection on January 6 — when the selection committee will meet to pick the team for the Tri-series (Australia, India and England) and the World Cup — could turn out to be a setback to India’s campaign.
Undergoing rehab
According to reliable sources, Jadeja suffered a shoulder tear while throwing during a practice session in Australia and returned home for diagnosis and rehabilitation. Jadeja is now undergoing treatment at the NCA rehabilitation centre at SRMC, Chennai.
Realising the value Jadeja brings to the team, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is in the process of obtaining clarity on replacement rules for ICC events. Over the next three days, it will also seek opinion from medical experts on the extent of recovery Jadeja has made since returning home and the time it will take for him to resume playing.
Usually the selection committee is given a fitness report of players and it would be interesting to see the position BCCI takes after getting all opinions and, most importantly, ODI captain M.S. Dhoni’s view.
India is slated to play the first warm-up game against Australia on February 8 and the second against Afghanistan on February 10 at Adelaide.
It needs to be seen whether the BCCI will give the green signal to the selection committee to choose Jadeja hoping that he will be fit to play by the first warm-up game.
The selection committee picked Gujarat all-rounder Axar Patel as replacement for Jadeja in the Test squad and he could become a straightaway choice in the event of the BCCI not receiving favourable reports on Jadeja’s fitness.
