India Cricket Team and the BCCI are hoping for a miracle with Rishabh Pant beginning a light workout at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru. Recovering from ligament surgery following a near-fatal car crash on December 30, Pant has shown remarkable progress. However, when he will be fit is a big question mark.
While World Cup 2023 is out of the question, the hope is to get him fit by the South Africa tour. But at this stage, even BCCI and the NCA’s sports science division physios are unclear whether the 25-year-old will be fit by December.
“No, it’s not possible to get Rishabh back for World Cup. He needs time, more importantly, he needs longer time to get back in keeping role,” a senior BCCI official told InsideSport earlier this week.
Rishabh Pant underwent ligament reconstruction surgery in Mumbai under Dr Dinshaw Pardiwala in February. However, with all three ligaments on the right knee needing surgery, the timeline on his return is unclear.
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For the time being, the medical team wants to give Rishabh as much time as possible. There is also a possibility that Rishabh returns to domestic cricket to get back to the competitive groove before making India comeback. Even the December timeline is tight for Rishabh.
The ideal return is possible in February-March next year. However, as of now, there is no clarity. As the youngster makes progress in his rehab, things will be clearer.
To remind everyone, Rishabh Pant has not touched his bat in the last 7 months. Hence, only when he resumes practice, things will be clear.
In the absence of Rishabh, Team India are looking at KL Rahul as the keeper in Asia Cup 2023 and World Cup 2023. In Tests, KS Bharat and Ishan Kishan are filling in the vacuum.
“Rahul is our designated keeper for ODIs and there are also Ishan and Sanju as backups,” the official added.
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