The casualty list ahead of the Indian Premier League’s 10th edition seems to be growing with each passing day. India off-spinner R Ashwin and opener Murali Vijay are likely to miss the entirety of the 10th season of the cash-rich league because of injuries, Wisden India reported.
Ashwin, who plays for the Rising Pune Supergiant, is said to be suffering from sports hernia, while Vijay has been left sore with shoulder trouble and will not turn up for Kings XI Punjab.
The duo join the likes of KL Rahul, who will not play for the Royal Challengers Bangalore for the whole season because of a shoulder injury. His teammate and India skipper Virat Kohli is also set to miss the opening stages of the league as he is recovering from a shoulder injury picked up during the recently-concluded India-Australia series.
Reports also suggest that Ravindra Jadeja and Umesh Yadav shall miss the first three weeks of the tournament. Jadeja, however, is likely to return for the latter stages of the tournament for his side Gujarat Lions. Yadav, who plays for Kolkata Knight Riders, on the other hand is said to have been advised rest to avoid fatigue.
Earlier, Delhi Daredevils had informed that Quinton de Kock was ruled out of the tournament after suffering a finger injury. His teammate JP Duminy too had pulled out of the league due to personal reasons.
Mitchell Starc too had parted way with RCB ahead of the players’ auction so as to focus on rehabilitation of a foot strain ahead of the ICC Champions Trophy.