Team India suffered a massive blow on Friday as their opening batsman Prithvi Shaw has been ruled out of the first Test against Australia in Adelaide.
Shaw hurt his ankle while trying to take a catch on Day 3 of the ongoing warm-up match against Cricket Australia XI and was carried off the Sydney Cricket Ground.
The 19-year-old, fielding on the deep mid-wicket boundary, caught a shot from Australian opener Max Bryant just inside the rope and then tried to flick the ball back into play as he fell over.
Shaw grimaced and looked to be in plenty of pain as medical staff rushed to be with him.
“Shaw underwent scans this morning and the reports revealed a lateral ligament injury. Shaw will be unavailable for the First Test against Australia in Adelaide. He will undergo an intensive rehabilitation program to hasten the recovery and be available for selection at the earliest,” BCCI said in a release.
Shaw’s injury means that Murali Vijay and KL Rahul will be India’s openers in the Adelaide Test. Vijay, who had an indifferent series against England and was dropped for the last two Tests on the tour, has a good Test record in Australia. He scored 482 runs (1 hundred, 4 fifties) on India’s last tour, being one of the kingpins of their impressive showing with the bat.
