Punjab Kings (PBKS) will continue to be without their star power hitter Liam Livingstone till at least mid-April, a member of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) told Cricbuzz on Thursday, April 6.
The Kings have been among the best teams going by early season form, having beaten the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) in their first two matches of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 season. However, Livingstone, who is yet to receive a fitness clearance from the ECB, also kept him out of their opening game of the season against KKR.
"He's due to arrive mid-April," an ECB official told Cricbuzz on Thursday. "He is coming along nicely."
Livingstone is not yet completely fit enough to participate in the IPL and has been working on his fitness at the Lancashire County Cricket Club (LCCC) with his teammates. He has been plagued with ankle and knee and has not played competitive cricket since December.
"He is still working through his rehab on the injury. He is currently working on his rehab at Old Trafford. He will be in India around April 15, the dates are fluid," the ECB official said.
By April 15, PBKS would have played five of their matches.
The English all-rounder was bought for Rs 11.5 crores in the 2022 IPL mega auction. He is the second English player in the PBKS side to be plagued with injuries. The Punjab-based franchise already suffered a big blow right ahead of the cash-rich tournament as injured Jonny Bairstow was ruled out of the entire tournament.
"We regret to inform you that Jonny Bairstow will not be a part of the IPL this season because of his injury. We wish him the best and look forward to seeing him next season.” PBKS posted on its Twitter account.
Earlier, reports had claimed that the 33-year-old was still undergoing rehab for the metal plate he had inserted in his left leg, in the aftermath of a freak injury suffered from slipping while playing golf.
Bairstow broke his left leg and dislocated his ankle on September 2, days before the third and final Test of England's home series against South Africa.
With England set to lock horns with Australia in the Ashes 2023 later this year, ECB reportedly decided to deny NOC to Bairstow who hasn’t played professional cricket since August.
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