India opener Abhishek Sharma faced an injury scare ahead of the second T20I against England as he twisted his ankle during the catching drill at nets in Chennai on Friday. Subsequently, Abhishek was checked by team physiotherapist on the field before retreating to the dressing room to give rest to his ankle. He was seen slightly limping while walking back to the pavilion and did not bat at nets either. The 24-year-old spent more than half an hour with the physio in the dressing room.
Abhishek made a quickfire 79 in the first match in Kolkata where India scored a facile seven-wicket victory. If Abhishek has to sit out of the match on Saturday in Chennai, India have the options of fielding Washington Sundar or Dhruv Jurel in the eleven.
In that event, Tilak Varma can move up the order to open with Sanju Samson. India are leading the five-match series 1-0 after winning the first match in Kolkata by seven wickets.
Meanwhile, India spinner Varun Chakravarthy on Friday equated the standards of Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy to IPL, and said cricketers should turn out more in the domestic tournament to improve their playing smarts in the T20 format.
Chakravarthy played a vital role in India’s seven-wicket triumph over England in the first T20I at Kolkata on Wednesday, picking up three wickets.
His words also resonated with the vision of India head coach Gautam Gambhir and chief selector Ajit Agarkar on placing emphasis on domestic cricket.
Several star cricketers such as India skipper Rohit Sharma and mercurial wicketkeeper batter Rishabh Pant appeared for their respective domestic teams in the penultimate round of the Ranji Trophy.
“The level of domestic cricket is extremely high. I would say almost on par with IPL and the other international matches we play. So, I would suggest everyone to play the Syed Mushtaq Ali because we play on small grounds. It is very challenging,” Chakravarthy said during the pre-match press conference.
“I find it very tough playing SMAT. It has definitely helped me to get better, be more instinctive, be on my toes and think correctly at the right moment,” he added.
