Rajasthan Royals (RR) took on Punjab Kings (PBKS) in Match 8 of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) in Guwahati on Wednesday. During the match, Royals’ star Jos Buttler sustained a finger injury when he attempted a catch of Shahrukh Khan.
The incident took place in the final over of Punjab’s innings bowled by all-rounder Jason Holder. The batter scooped the ball in the air towards long-on, and Buttler ran in to pluck a wonderful catch. However, during the process, he injured his little finger on his left hand, which appeared to be severe as the England cricketer was seen grimacing in pain and holding his finger after taking the catch.
As a result, the Royals were forced to make a change in their batting order as Ravichandran Ashwin, who was not a regular opener, was given the responsibility of opening the batting in the absence of Buttler. The English cricketer did come to bat but wasn’t looking fit and could only score 19 as the Royals ended up falling 5 runs short of PBKS total.
After the match, the Royals captain Sanju Samson revealed that Buttler had received multiple stitches on his little finger and was not fit to play in the next match against the Delhi Capitals. Notably, Buttler was also seen receiving the award for the best catch with strapping on his little finger, indicating that he was still recovering from the injury.
“Jos had a injury, he got injured while fielding and was getting stitches. The physio wanted some time, which wasn’t there to finish the stitches and then go out to open,” said Samson in the post-match presser.
Although the extent of the injury and how long it would take for Buttler to recover fully is not yet known, but his absence in the next match will undoubtedly be a big blow to the 2008 IPL winners.
