Shreyas Iyer’s condition continues to baffle observers as different sources report on his injury status and level of fitness differently. Concerned officials have stated that his participation in the Indian Premier League (IPL) is not in danger, despite some rumours suggesting that he would miss a few games at the start of the competition. Strangely enough, though, on the fourth and fifth days of the recently concluded Ranji Trophy final, Iyer did not take the pitch for Vidarbha during their second innings.
Mumbai team manager Bhushan Patil said, “There’s no reason to worry; he’s fine and will be heading to Kolkata for the pre-IPL camp in two days.” Officials from Kolkata Knight Riders have mirrored this stance, saying they haven’t heard anything to refute Patil’s claim. Iyer and his team haven’t, however, made an official announcement on his level of fitness.
After Iyer scored 95 runs in the second innings of the Ranji final, he went under the scanner after complaining of back pain. The scan results are not conclusive, according to sources close to the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA), and the precise diagnosis will be known as soon as the MCA receives word from the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru, Cricbuzz has learned.
In any case, it is now evident that Iyer missed the Ranji Trophy quarterfinal due to a problematic back, even if the NCA was not aware of any problems at the time. Because of his decision to boycott the quarterfinal, he was accused of favouring the Indian Premier League over domestic cricket and was consequently excluded from the central contract list. Iyer took part in the Ranji Trophy semifinal and final, while he was unable to play in the quarterfinal owing to a back injury.
“Iyer played in the semifinals for the Mumbai squad. Prior to the commencement of the Test series between India and England, Iyer had participated in a Ranji match at the request of the Indian team administrators. So it’s not like he’s declined to participate in the Ranji Trophy in any way. Sunil Gavaskar wrote last month in Mid-Day defending Iyer, “He did miss the quarterfinal, but that was also the time he had informed the team management of his inability to play the third Test match due to some pain in his back if he batted for some length of time.”
However, the most recent version on the player is completely different. There are rumours that Iyer might be reinstated, and there are indications that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) may reevaluate its decision to remove him from the contract list. A top BCCI official responded to a question regarding this by saying that no decision has been made, but he did not discount the rumours.
