IPL 2024: Shreyas Iyer set to play from beginning, no major injury found

Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Shreyas Iyer has hurt his back again and it was speculated that he may miss the first half of the IPL 2024. During his 95-run knock against Vidarbha in the Ranji Trophy final, Iyer’s back injury resurfaced again, for which, the cricketer underwent surgery in 2023. It kept him out of action for a long period, as he made his return during the Asia Cup in September.

Earlier, the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) hasn’t released the details of Iyer’s injury but as per a source close to the team, ‘it’s not looking good’. It is being reported that the player would not take the field on Day 5 of the Ranji Trophy final and miss the initial matches of the IPL. 

“It’s not looking good. It’s the same back injury which has got aggravated. It’s unlikely that he will take the field on Day 5 of the Ranji Trophy final. He is in danger of missing the initial matches of the IPL,” a source told The Times of India.

However, in a new development, Iyer is tipped to play the upcoming IPL 2024 right from the start of the cricket carnival. Some reports have emerged which claim that even after missing out on playing for Mumbai on day 4 and 5 of the Ranji Trophy 2024 Final, there were no major injury found and the KKR skipper is set to play without skipping any game. Besides, Iyer did not came out on the field which has been called as precautionary measures by the Mumbai team management.

“Shreyas is scheduled to join the KKR camp on Friday. He is unlikely to miss games,” a source was quoted as saying by RevSportz.

BCCI mulling over reinstating Shreyas Iyer's central contract

Meanwhile, during the England series, Shreyas Iyer complained about his back pain but he eventually got dropped after the second Test. He opted out of Mumbai’s quarterfinal match against Baroda in the Ranji Trophy citing back pain but interestingly, the National Cricket Academy (NCA) medical head Nitin Patel gave him the fit certificate, which eventually played a massive part in his getting axed from BCCI’s annual central contract.

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But after having featured in a few Ranji games of late, there is a discussion within the BCCI camp that Iyer's central contract may be reinstated soon. Notably, the Mumbai-based batter was not retained in the list of centrally contracted athletes along with another player in Ishan Kishan after they decided to skip a few games of the Ranji Trophy this season. Later on, in the case of Iyer, it was revealed that the batter had visited the KKR academy to work out on his workload as he was facing back spasms after nearly playing 10 overs.

Last year, they missed his service owing to the same injury as Nitish Rana was made the captain of the team. Also, in 2023, the franchise was hopeful that Iyer would be available to play the second half of the IPL but that didn't happen. They would bee hoping that the same thing doesn't happen as in 2024. Meanwhile, in Iyer's absence, Rana is likely to lead the team again. When it comes to the playing XI, Manish Pandey can replace Iyer but nothing has been decided yet.

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The KKR players and the support staff are slated to reach Kolkata on March 14 as they will play their opening game against Sunrisers Hyderabad on March 23. Meanwhile, it needs to be seen if the franchise addresses the Iyer situation after their camp begins in Kolkata.