IND vs AUS: KL Rahul Ruled Out of India Test Series Due to Wrist Injury

Team India opener and reserve wicketkeeper KL Rahul will not be available for selection for the final two Tests of the Border-Gavaskar series after being ruled out with a left wrist injury.

Rahul sprained his left wrist while batting in the nets at the Melbourne Cricket Ground during India’s practice session on Saturday.

Rahul, who will be out of action for at least 3 weeks, will now return home to Bengaluru and join the National Cricket Academy for further rehabilitation. He is the third Indian player to return home from the Test series with an injury after fast bowlers Mohammed Shami (fractured arm) and Umesh Yadav (calf injury).

“KL Rahul sprained his left wrist while batting in the nets at the MCG during Team India’s practice session on Saturday. The wicketkeeper-batsman will not be available for the remaining two Tests of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy as he will need about three weeks time to recover completely and regain full strength.

“He will now return to India and head to the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru for further rehabilitation of his injury,” BCCI secretary Jay Shah said in a statement.

The right-hander wasn’t a part of the playing XI in the first two Tests but was a key member of the Indian squad in the white-ball leg. His exploits in the limited-overs formats over the past few years made him a solid option for the middle-order, in case India needed to shore up their batting.

The third Test in Sydney will begin on January 7 and there are doubts over the Brisbane Test as the Indian cricket team have reportedly expressed reservations on the stricter quarantine rules in Queensland as they have already served their mandatory 14-day quarantine in the country when they arrived in Sydney in November.