NEW DELHI: Injury-prone Indian pacer Mayank Yadav is on the verge of regaining full bowling fitness after spending nearly a year sidelined with a lower back stress fracture.
The 23-year-old had impressed with his raw pace in IPL 2024, earning a place in India's T20I squad, but managed to play just two matches in the 2025 edition due to his injury.
Despite his fitness concerns, Lucknow Super Giants showed confidence in the Delhi fast bowler by retaining him ahead of last month's IPL auction.
"Mayank Yadav is progressing well through his rehabilitation and has successfully achieved bowling at 90 per cent intensity, with a current workload of 18 overs per week," a BCCI official told PTI, referring to Mayank's rehabilitation at Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.
"He has also demonstrated significant improvements in strength and conditioning, enabling him to approach the maximal fitness levels required for pace bowling.
"Over the forthcoming weeks, he is expected to progress to bowling at 100 per cent intensity, alongside the integration of high-intensity fielding activities, subject to ongoing symptom tolerance and monitoring," the official added.
Riyan Parag resumes batting in nets
The official also provided an update on India batter Riyan Parag, who is not playing the Vijay Hazare Trophy due to a right shoulder injury. He last played a competitive game on December 6.
"Riyan has shown good progress following the injection to his right shoulder on 16th December 2025. He has regained full shoulder range of motion and is currently pain-free through all movements. He is continuing with a progressive shoulder strengthening and ground conditioning program without any limitations," said the official.
"This week, he has resumed batting in the nets against throw-downs and spinners, demonstrating steady improvement in intensity across each session. He is scheduled to commence a progressive bowling and throwing program next week, alongside ongoing batting skill activities," he added.
(With PTI Inputs)
