India batter and vice-captain KL Rahul and left-arm spinner Axar Patel have been ruled out of T20I series against West Indies, the BCCI announced on Friday. They have been replaced by and Ruturaj Gaikwad and all-rounder Deepak Hooda.
Rahul missed the third and final ODI against West Indies which is currently being played with captain Rohit Sharma saying that India’s vice-captain was nursing a niggle. In the second ODI, after Rahul was on his way back to the change room after getting run out for 49, he was seen favouring his lower back.
But the he BCCI confirmed that Rahul injured his left hamstring while fielding and will not be part of the three T20Is series that starts February 16 at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Axar, on the other hand, was on the road to recovery and was named in the T20I squad, but it turns that the left-arm spinner would require more time before being declared match-fit.
“Rahul sustained an upper left hamstring strain during fielding in the 2nd ODI on 9th February 2022 while Axar has resumed the final stage of his rehabilitation after recently recovering from Covid-19. They will now head to the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru for further management of their injury,” the release stated.
India’s updated T20I squad: Rohit Sharma (captain), Ishan Kishan, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Surya Kumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, Ravi Bishnoi, Yuzvendra Chahal, Washington Sundar, Mohammed Siraj, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Avesh Khan, Harshal Patel, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Deepak Hooda.
