Star Indian all-rounder Shardul Thakur suffered an ankle injury during the Test series against South Africa. He featured in the first Test match at Centurion before being dropped from the second match at Cape Town as Mukesh Kumar and Prasidh Krishna featured along with Bumrah and Siraj where India registered a famous 7 wickets win to level the series at 1-1.
He has not featured for Mumbai in four league matches during the ongoing 2023-24 Ranji Trophy tournament. They were keen to play Shardul Thakur in the third league match against Kerala at Thiruvananthapuram from January 19th onwards. Due to non-clearance from the National Cricket Academy, Shardul Thakur was not able to play this match.
“Shardul Thakur had some issue in his ankle and he was advised two-week rest by the National Cricket Academy. He was in Bengaluru for further assessment and future course of action and is likely to be available for selection soon,” Mumbai chief selector Raju Kulkarni said
“We are still waiting for NCA’s Return to Play (RTP) report on Shardul Thakur. We need to follow the procedure and the moment the report comes, we will have clearance to pick him up for the Ranji Trophy. For now, we have made the necessary provisions and will pick him up only when the report comes from the NCA. We are hopeful to get the RTP before our sixth round game,” Kulkarni added.
Mumbai will play Bengal in the fifth-round match against Bengal at Eden Gardens, Kolkata, the situation remains the same awaiting the return of play from clearance from the National Cricket Academy.
Mumbai’s performance in Ranji Trophy 2023-24
Mumbai suffered their first loss in the 2023-24 Ranji Trophy with a 2-wicket loss against Uttar Pradesh at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai. They began with an innings and 51-run victory against Bihar to gain 7 points.
Mumbai thrashed Andhra Pradesh by 10 wickets to register second 7 points. They continued their winning form with a 232-run victory over Kerala. Mumbai is currently at the top of Group C with 20 points with 3 wins and 1 loss.
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