India pacer Tushar Deshpande has slammed reports of his recovery time getting extended by another "two to three months". Deshpande had ankle surgery in London in September 2024 and is yet to make his return competitive cricket after he made his T20I debut in 2024.
"FAKE NEWS!!!! UNACCEPTABLE and UNPROFESSIONAL to NOT authenticate the news before posting !! I look at it as a very cheap move to gain a few extra views on your page!" Deshpande wrote on X.
Deshpande's T20I debut
In his debut T20I series against Zimbabwe, he took one wicket each in two games at an average of 27.50. He conceded runs at an economy rate of 9.16 runs per over.
Deshpande's IPL career
The former Chennai Super Kings (CSK) pacer will represent Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). In the previous season, Desphande picked 17 wickets from 13 games for CSK. In CSK's IPL 2023-winning run, the Mumbai-born pacer claimed 21 wickets from 16 games at an average of 26.85. Overall, since his debut, he has taken 42 wickets from 36 games.
Star pick for Royals
The inaugural edition's winners, RR roped in Deshpande for Rs 6.5 crore after a mini-bidding war with CSK. He had a base price of Rs 1 crore. Apart from Sandeep Sharma and Akash Madhwal, Deshpande is one of the prominent Indian pacers in the Sanju Samson-led side.
Deshpande's career statistics
Deshpande missed the entire Ranji Trophy 2024-25. His last List A appearance was in December 2023. So far, he has played 36 first-clas games and taken 97 wickets including five five-wicket hauls. In List A, he has 51 wickets from 40 games including one fifer.