BPL 2019: Alex Hales ruled out of the tournament

Alex Hales is currently in the form of his life as he has wielded his magic with the bat in hand for Rangpur Riders in the ongoing edition of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL). The Riders are at the top of the points table with seven victories from 11 matches and the 30-year-old Hales has played a significant role in their campaign. Subsequently, the Mashrafe Mortaza-led team has already qualified for the playoffs.

In the meantime, it has been learned that the Middlesex-born has been ruled out of the remainder of the tournament due to a shoulder injury that he sustained during the match against Rajshahi Kings at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chattogram. The Riders won that match by six wickets. The news has been confirmed by Tom Moody, the Riders’ head coach, after the team’s practice session on Thursday.

A body blow for the Riders

”We got the news last night and he required going back to London to have some specialist opinion on his left shoulder. He hurt his left shoulder last game during his batting and not in fielding and the English Cricket Board requested that he get some further advice and get and MRI and scan.

Unfortunately, that’s the end of his tournament with us and obviously he had a significant impact and great value to us,” Moody, also a former Australian cricketer, was quoted as saying in Cricbuzz.

In the first half of the T20 extravaganza, the Riders languished at the bottom of the points table. However, Hales helped them turn their fortunes around. The right-hander notched 304 runs in eight matches at an average of 43.42 and a strike-rate of 167.03.

He also racked up a century against Chittagong Vikings in Chattogram. His superlative knock was laced with 11 boundaries and five over-boundaries and it helped the Riders win by 72 runs. Hales also scored half-centuries against Dhaka Dynamites and Khulna Titans.

Get the latest Cricket News and updates, Match Predictions, Fantasy Cricket Tips and lots more on CricTracker.com.