Ruturaj Gaikwad not making it to India's playing XI for the first T20I against Sri Lanka turned a few heads. Gaikwad was unimpressive against West Indies in the third T20I but was expected to open alongside Rohit Sharma again in absence of KL Rahul. However, an injury led to him getting ruled out of the first T20I at Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow.
“Ruturaj was supposed to play, but he has a wrist injury and will not play today,” skipper Rohit said at the coin toss.
The star Maharashtra opener complained of pain in his right wrist, which is affecting his batting. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) medical team is examining him. There's no word regarding his availability for the next two T20Is.
Earlier, the 25-year-old scored just four runs from eight deliveries against West Indies while opening with Ishan Kishan as Rohit batted in the middle order to give the youngster a chance. His T20I debut series was not stellar either as he registered scores of 21 and 14 last year in July against Sri Lanka. Gaikwad was part of a second-string squad led by Shikhar Dhawan.
Gaikwad was handed his debut cap after a consistent run in Indian Premier League (IPL) for Chennai Super Kings (CSK). The top order batter 635 runs from 16 innings at an average of 45.35 including one century and four half-centuries. With just few runs ahead of his batting partner Faf du Plessis, he won the Orange Cap as well. He was also among the list of retained players by Chennai Super Kings (CSK).
