CHENNAI: Bhuvneshwar Kumar's thigh injury, which has ruled him out of the remainder of Sunrisers Hyderabad's campaign in the IPL, could also see him miss India's upcoming tour of Australia starting in November.
Though initial indications pointed to a hip injury suffered during the match against Chennai Super Kings last week, it has emerged that he also has a thigh injury and has been advised up to six weeks of rest.
With Hyderabad naming Andhra left-arm seamer Prithvi Raj Yarra as his replacement, it is not clear whether Bhuvneshwar will return to India and undergo rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy, which is a must for all centrally-contracted players.
India's squad for Australia will be selected soon and there is a strong chance that Bhuvneshwar will not make the cut for the limited-over series, which is tentatively scheduled to begin on November 27 in Brisbane.
Ever since he suffered a hamstring tear during last year's World Cup, Bhuvneshwar has moved down the pecking order. He missed India's home Test series against South Africa and Bangladesh with what selectors termed a niggle.
Though he returned for the T20Is against West Indies, he was ruled out of the ODIs because of a groin injury and subsequently didn't make it to the tour of New Zealand.
The latest setback means India might give Deepak Chahar, his replacement in the past, a prolonged run. Though Bhuvneshwar could be fit by the time the Test series begins in mid-December, chances of him being in the squad appears thin.
He last donned India whites in Johannesburg in January, 2018. Though he was part of the squad when India toured Australia in 2018-19, Bhuvneshwar didn't find a spot in the XI even in Perth, where Virat Kohli fielded a four-pronged pace attack and chose Umesh Yadav on a lively pitch.
Though India are likely to take a 28-member squad to Australia keeping in mind the quarantine rules, the complexities involved in bringing him back into a bio-secure bubble may also work against him. With Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma and Umesh around, the selectors may continue to invest in Navdeep Saini going forward.