Four-time Indian Premier League (IPL) champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) suffered a massive blow to their hopes of a revival this season after medium pacer Deepak Chahar was ruled out for the remainder of the 2022 campaign. New reports from a daily leading newspaper now suggest that Chahar is set to be out of action for four months, and might also miss the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup being played in Australia this year.
Chahar, who was signed by CSK at the IPL 2022 mega auction for Rs 14 crores, was previously recovering from a right quadriceps injury at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru. With the 29-year-old nearing his return, he was expected to rejoin his team in the middle of the IPL 2022 season but a couple of days ago, it was reported that another injury has derailed his plans.
Further scans now suggest that the pacer is likely to face a lengthy spell on the sidelines, and might not even be available for India during the T20 World Cup.
In the absence of Chahar, CSK have struggled to pick wickets in the powerplay overs, and are languishing in the bottom half of the table. The pacer was the franchise's go-to option in the first six overs. Over the last couple of seasons, he has been a deadly bowler with the new ball for CSK. This time around, however, the franchise has only tasted victory in one of their first five games.
“We are not aware of this back injury. He has been working very hard to get back to shape and play again for us. But for now, he remains unavailable”, a source close to CSK management recently told InsideSport.
With the T20 World Cup 2022 taking place in October-November, the extent of the injury makes it tough for Chahar to make a comeback for the marquee ICC tournament. The Indian selectors faced plenty of criticism for selecting an unfit Hardik Pandya for the 2021 T20 World Cup and would be keen not to repeat the same mistake with Chahar.
Over the last few months, Chahar has emerged as a capable all-rounder for both club and country, scoring crucial runs down the batting order. His injury will surely cost both CSK and the Indian team dearly.
