The Royal Challengers Bangalore's (RCB) head coach Sanjay Bangar confirmed that their star English pacer Reece Topley has been ruled out of the tournament after the injury that he sustained in their first match of the tournament against the Mumbai Indians (MI) in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 season.
Topley was the victim of a dislocated shoulder on his IPL debut at M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru on April 2. "Reece Topley has travelled back home and he has been ruled out of the tournament. We will be seeking for a replacement soon," said Bangar ahead of the game against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).
The injury took place in the eighth over of RCB's innings when Topley ran across and put in a dive to stop the ball. The left-arm pacer landed awkwardly on his right shoulder while sliding. He was wincing in pain and the RCB physio rushed to his aid. He had to be helped off the field and did not take any further part in the game.
Earlier in the same game, he started his IPL career in style with the wicket of MI's Rs 17.5 crore recruit Cameron Green. Topley's full delivery crashed into Green's stumps. The Englishman conceded 14 runs from his two overs.
Two RCB players have already been ruled out this season due to injuries. Rajat Patidar and Will Jacks miss be out of commission for the Bengaluru-based side. Australian pacer Josh Hazlewood is expected to miss the first seven matches and return for the second leg on April 17.
RCB squad for IPL 2023: Virat Kohli, Glenn Maxwell, Mohammad Siraj, Faf Du Plessis, Harshal Patel, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dinesh Karthik, Shahbaz Ahmed, Rajat Patidar, Anuj Rawat, Akash Deep, Josh Hazlewood, Mahipal Lomror, Finn Allen, Suyash Prabhudessai, Karn Sharma, Siddharth Kaul, David Willey, Himanshu Sharma, Manoj Bhandage, Rajan Kumar, Avinash Singh, Sonu Yadav, Micheal Bracewell
