Australia fast bowler Pat Cummins has been ruled out of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018 with a back issue, Cricket Australia has confirmed.
Cummins was bought by the Mumbai Indians for 5.40 crores at the IPL auction, but missed the opening match of the tournament, a narrow defeat to the Chennai Super Kings.
The 24-year-old has a “bone oedema in his vertebrae” (swelling in the joint), which is not the more serious stress fracture.
CA’s Bupa Support Team Physiotherapist, David Beakley said: “Pat experienced some back soreness during the fourth Test in South Africa. Follow-up scans have confirmed that he has bone oedema in his vertebrae.
“It is important that Pat has time off bowling, to prevent the injury becoming more serious and consequently we have made the decision to rule Pat out of the IPL.
“Pat will now undergo a period of recovery and rehabilitation and we will look to re-scan him in a few weeks to assess the healing.
“Following this we will be in a better position to decide on Pat’s return to play timeline including participation in the limited overs tour of the UK.”
In a blow for the Mumbai Indians, Cummins will miss the IPL 2018 after a heavy workload during the past year, where he played 13 consecutive Tests. He has bowled 447.5 overs across all formats since the start of the last Australian summer.
