Birmingham, July 1:
Indian all-rounder Vijay Shankar was Monday ruled out of the ongoing World Cup due to a toe injury and will be replaced by batsman Mayank Agarwal, who is yet to make his ODI debut.
Shankar is the second Indian player to be ruled out of the tournament after senior opener Shikhar Dhawan exited due to a thumb fracture, sustained in the game against Australia. Rishabh Pant had replaced him.
“Vijay Shankar was struck on the left big toe whilst batting in the nets on June 19th in Southampton. He was able to play in an unrestricted manner in the following two matches against Afghanistan and West Indies,” said the BCCI in a statement.
“Following the match on June 27, the condition of his toe worsened and a CT scan showed he sustained a non-displaced fracture of the left big toe. The condition will require a minimum of three weeks to heal. The injury rules him out of the ongoing World Cup,” it added.
The BCCI named Agarwal as Shankar’s replacement and it was approved by the International Cricket Council. The Indian team had requested the BCCI for a “suitable top-order batsman”.
“The International Cricket Council has confirmed that the Event Technical Committee of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2019 has approved Mayank Agarwal as a replacement player for Vijay Shankar in the India squad for the remainder of the tournament,” said the ICC in a release.
Karnataka opener Agarwal, who made his Test debut against Australia last year, is yet to play an ODI. It has been learnt that his performance in England during the last A series under Rahul Dravid’s coaching has been factored in while deciding his name.
India A won the ODI tri-series involving England Lions and West Indies A with Mayank and Prithvi Shaw topping the batting charts.
“The Indian team management asked for Mayank Agarwal as replacement since he is an opener and also it might give KL Rahul a chance to get back to the No.4 position in case Rishabh Pant fails in the next two games,” a BCCI source said.
Rohit Sharma had talked about Shankar’s injury on Sunday but it was presumed to be an old hit that he took at Southampton. It now seems that Shankar’s toe injury aggravated after playing against Afghanistan and West Indies. (PTI)
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