Ahead of the start of the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), Kolkata Knight Riders were dealt with a massive blow with their skipper Eoin Morgan suffering a thumb injury. Morgan copped up the blow during the recently-concluded limited-overs series between India and England that kept him out of action for the last two ODI games.

Morgan split the webbing between his thumb and index finger and had to get the stitches and was thus forced to sit out from the tour’s final two games. Wicket-keeper batsman Jos Buttler lead the side instead. In the absence of Eoin Morgan, England lost the series 2-1 and returned empty-handed after a similar fate in the Tests and T20Is.

I feel a lot better about my injury – Eoin Morgan

Meanwhile, there were speculations that Eoin might have to sit out in the first few games of IPL 2021 due to his hand injury. However, in a virtual press conference on Wednesday, the Kolkata Knight Riders skipper confirmed that he is progressing well and feels a lot better than he did a week ago. Eoin Morgan further revealed that his stitches will be removed on Thursday after which he will be focusing on his batting and fielding.

“I feel a lot better than I did probably a week ago. The plan moving forward is to remove the stitches tomorrow. Then progress my batting in the coming days and over the week, and then fielding at the back end of that. Given the time frame that I have available to me, it is looking very good,” said Morgan.

Kolkata Knight Riders, who will be keen to add another trophy to their cabinet, will begin their IPL 2021 campaign against Sunrisers Hyderabad on April 11 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

Incidentally, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is all set to host the 14th edition of the IPL in India across six venues namely Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Mumbai, and Kolkata, scheduled to start from April 9. The opening match will take place between Mumbai Indians (MI) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in Chennai.