India received one good and one bad news on the fitness front as pace spearhead Ishant Sharma bowled at the nets of the Indian team on Tuesday while young seamer Shardul Thakur was ruled out for up to seven weeks following a tendon injury.
Senior quick Ishant bowled during the Indian team’s training session in Vizag on the eve of the second ODI against the West Indies. The tall pacer had been out of action after an ankle injury he picked up in the England Test series. The 30-year-old bowled for about half an hour on Tuesday.
Ishant’s imminent return is good news for the Indian team as it looks to field a fully fit bowling unit in Australia at the end of the year, something it failed to do for vast parts of the England series following injuries to Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah.
Ishant’s return to fitness comes at a time when Thakur – who picked a right adductor tendon injury on his Test debut against the West Indies in the Hyderabad Test – has been asked to undergo rehab for at least seven weeks. Thakur bowled just 1.4 overs on his Test debut before being forced off the field.
That means Shardul will miss the three-match T20 series in Australia – which starts on November 21 – and at least part of the four-match Test encounter that begins on December 6. India and Australia play a three-match ODI series beginning January 12.
“Even if I try hard, I won’t be able to get fit before the second Test in Australia (that starts on December 14). A place in the T20Is or the Tests will be difficult,” Thakur was quoted as saying by The Indian Express. “I will be eyeing the one-dayers instead. Let’s see how my rehab goes. I will continue with my training for the next seven weeks.”
