New Delhi: Uncertainty prevailed on Thursday about who would lead the Indian cricket team in West Indies following injury to Gautam Gambhir who found himself in the midst of a controversy for playing in the cash-rich IPL at the cost of national duty.
 Uncertainty prevailed about who would lead India in West Indies following injury to Gambhir who found himself in the midst of a controversy for playing in the cash-rich IPL at the cost of national duty. © AFP |
Gambhir, who was named the captain for the ODI series in West Indies, has aggravated his shoulder injury during the IPL and Kolkata Knight Riders physio Andrew Leipus said he would need four to six weeks to recover fully.
In case Gambhir is ruled out of the West Indies series, young Suresh Raina is likely to be named the captain.
Despite the injury, Gambhir played the eliminator match against Mumbai Indians on Wednesday and the move has now snowballed into a controversy and sparked a debate on whether players are more keen to play in events like IPL rather than the country.
BCCI Secretary N Srinivasan said the Board had received the report submitted by KKR physio Andrew Leipus on Gambhir's shoulder injury and a decision will be taken very soon.
"We have received the report from Leipus and we are analysing it. We will take into account all aspects of the injury," Srinivasan said.
"We are taking stock of the report and we will take a final decision once we are through with it. If we find that he is not fit, he will not go on the tour. We will then decide on a replacement," he said.
Later, a BCCI media release said that a decision on Gambhir will be taken after his fitness is assessed by the Indian team physiotherapist.
Gambhir sustained the injury to his right shoulder during the World Cup final against Sri Lanka last month while taking a catch. The injury got aggravated when Gambhir made a sliding stop during their last IPL league match against Mumbai Indians in Kolkata on May 22.
KKR, who bought Gambhir for a whopping 11.4 crore in the auctions, maintained that the BCCI had been kept in the loop when their captain aggravated the injury.
"The last match we played in Kolkata, we took immediate steps to ensure that we have precautionary scans done. That's the basis on which report was sent to the BCCI. I can say that we did not hide anything from the BCCI as a matter of fact," said KKR CEO Venky Mysore.
"Gautam actually reported to KKR after the World Cup, he was actually complaining of some pain in his shoulder. He apparently had that pain even during the World Cup, in the World Cup final against Sri Lanka, I think in the process of trying to take a catch, he seems to have increased the pain a bit.
"When he reported to us we sent our report. It was done exactly in a timely manner. We did not feel that there is anything different which necessitated any additional steps earlier in the season and it was done purely on a preferred basis," Mysore said.
Leipus, in his report to the BCCI secretary N Srinivasan, said Gambhir needs four to six weeks' rest to recover fully, which means that the Indian opener could even miss the subsequent tour of England.
Leipus had written that the player felt acute pain in his right shoulder while landing on it on the field during the World Cup final against Sri Lanka at the Wankhede stadium on April 2. Subsequent scans have now revealed a serious injury that would require him to avoid throwing or batting for four to six weeks.
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