Rajat Patidar. (Photo Source: BCCI)
India will look to end the five-match Test series against England with a scoreline of 4-1 as they take them on in the fifth Test beginning from March 07 at Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharamsala. The Rohit Sharma-led side took an unassailable 3-1 lead beating them by five wickets in Ranchi and clinched the series.
Ahead of the fifth Test, the Indian team have an injury concern as star batter KL Rahul has not regained his match fitness ahead of the game. According to reports, Rahul has flown to London to consult a specialist for his quadriceps injury. If he fails to recover in time, the team management will have to continue with Rajat Patidar in the middle order.
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Notably, the 30-year-old hasn’t got off to a good start to his career having scored just 63 runs from six innings in the series so far. According to a report in Times of India, the team management isn’t willing to continue with Patidar and wants him to play Ranji Trophy semi-final for Madhya Pradesh against Vidarbha on March 2.
The management is planning to bring Rahul into the XI if he gets fit in time and wants to release him to participate in the Ranji Trophy. However, if Rahul fails to regain fitness Patidar will remain in the side.
“Ideally, the team management would want to see Patidar go back to play the Ranji semifinal and find some form. But that depends on Rahul’s availability. If Rahul is unavailable then he may be asked to stay back with the team. Even if Devdutt Padikkal makes his debut in the last Test, the team management needs an extra batter in the team as a concussion substitute,” a source was quoted as saying by The Times of India.
Rahul continues to feel discomfort despite green signal by NCA
Meanwhile, Rahul has been complaining of pain and discomfort in his quadriceps despite the NCA medical team clearing him match fit. Hence, they have decided to send him to London to have a closer look at the problem.
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“The medical team thought Rahul was good to go for the last three Tests. But he complained of discomfort. He is a bit concerned about it. He has endured a heavy workload while keeping wickets in the World Cup and the Test series in South Africa. Multiple scans have been done on his quads. While there is nothing very concerning, some inflammation has been noted. The reports were sent to the doctor who treated him in England. Eventually, the doctor asked him to travel to England so that he could personally check what’s wrong with Rahul,” the source added.
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