Kolkata Knight Riders might suffer yet another injury blow ahead of the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2023). The two-time champions are already looking set to miss the services of their skipper Shreyas Iyer for at least the first few games and now Lockie Ferguson could also join him on the sidelines.
The New Zealand pacer will miss the first ODI against Sri Lanka on Saturday (March 25) after suffering a right-hamstring injury, New Zealand Cricket confirmed on Thursday (March 23). The right-arm pacer was deemed unfit to play after a fitness test at training.
“Lockie Ferguson has been ruled out of Saturday’s ODI against Sri Lanka due to a right hamstring injury. The Aces paceman underwent a fitness test at training today which confirmed he would be unfit to play. A replacement will be confirmed early tomorrow,” New Zealand Cricket stated.
SQUAD NEWS | Lockie Ferguson has been ruled out of Saturday’s ODI against Sri Lanka due to a right hamstring injury. The Aces paceman underwent a fitness test at training today which confirmed he would be unfit to play. A replacement will be confirmed early tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/hQRWgoc4eE
— BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) March 23, 2023
Lockie Ferguson was only due to feature in the opening match of the series against Sri Lanka before joining Finn Allen and Glenn Phillips in leaving for IPL 2023. Giving an update on the bowler, New Zealand bowling coach Shane Jurgensen said that he had been experiencing stiffness in his hamstring since playing in the Plunket Shield for Auckland two weeks ago.
Kolkata Knight Riders would be hoping that the injury is not serious and he recovers as soon as possible. With not much time left before IPL 2023 gets underway, the pacer could miss at least the first few games if he does not recover any time soon.
Last year, Kolkata Knight Riders had traded Lockie Ferguson along with Rahmanullah Gurbaz from Gujarat Titans. Before joining Titans, Ferguson had represented KKR from 2017 to 2021.
Shreyas Iyer sidelined:
In another blow to Kolkata Knight Riders, Shreyas Iyer is likely to miss at least the first half of the season due to a back injury. The star batsman suffered the injury while fielding during the third Test against Australia this month.
As per ESPNcricinfo, Iyer has opted out of surgery for the recurring lower-back injury but has been advised rest as he continues his rehab. With the 50-over World Cup ahead, he is unlikely to rush his comeback and it could see him miss a good part of the IPL.
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