NEW DELHI: Young India speedster Harshit Rana is likely to be ruled out of the T20 World Cup after suffering a knee injury during a warm-up match, with skipper Suryakumar Yadav admitting on Friday that the situation is “not looking good”.
While Suryakumar stopped short of officially ruling him out, his comments strongly suggested that one of head coach Gautam Gambhir’s protégés is unlikely to regain fitness in time for any of the matches, starting with the tournament opener against the USA on Saturday.
“Harshit Rana has not been ruled out yet, the physios are assessing him but he does not look good,” Suryakumar said at the pre-match press conference here on Friday.
However, dependable sources within the Indian camp maintained that Rana has virtually no chance of recovering at any stage of the competition.
Rana managed to bowl just one over in the warm-up fixture against South Africa, conceding 16 runs before leaving the field due to the knee issue.
Though Rana is not a guaranteed starter in the playing eleven, with an economy rate of 10.60 from nine T20Is, he would have been a useful option in certain conditions and also adds value as a lower-order hitter.
With Rana sidelined, experienced pacers Prasidh Krishna and Mohammed Siraj are among those likely to be in contention for a spot.
Meanwhile, all-rounder Washington Sundar is already under a cloud with a side strain and a rib muscle tear.
(With PTI Inputs)
