Ishant Sharma tweaks ankle ahead of New Zealand tour

Ishant Sharma, the Indian fast bowler, has developed an ankle injury during Delhi’s Ranji Trophy match against Vidarbha at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi. The development can turn out to be a significant one for the speedster as the Test squad for the tour of New Zealand is around the corner. For the matches to start, there’s still a month left for the bowler to recover.

In the second day of the domestic game, Ishant looked in pain after slipping on his follow-through. The pacer churned out a short-pitched delivery and left-hander Faiz Fazal tried to pull the ball away. But the leather struck the batsman’s pads and Ishant appealed with all his might. However, to his dismay, the 31-year-old Ishant lost his balance and then winced in severe pain.

Ishant doing well in Ranji Trophy

The pacer was then treated with medical attention and he limped off the park with the help of the support staff. In the second innings, Ishant could only send down 2.3 overs and left-arm pacer Kulwant Khejroliya finished the incomplete over. Prior to the injury, Ishant had a decent outing. In Vidarbha’s first innings, the seamer picked up three wickets in his 14 overs.

He got rid of Wasim Jaffer, who scored a 131-ball 83, Akshay Wadkar and Umesh Yadav. Ishant was also impressive in the previous match of the Ranji Trophy against Hyderabad. In that game, the tall and lanky pacer picked up a four-wicket haul in both innings., conceding only 108 runs. On the back of his spells of bowling, Delhi bowled Hyderabad out for 69 and 298 and won by seven wickets.

If he doesn’t attain the required fitness, then the Indian team will be dealt with a body blow. Ishant has been plying his trade with the Test team for over a decade and has a truckload of experience. Of late, he also been ruffled a few feathers with his vicious bouncers, showing his class and calibre.

His next outing is supposed to be a practice match in Hamilton. Nevertheless, if he is severely injured then he is likely to go for rehabilitation in the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru. The first Test in New Zealand gets underway on February 21 at the Basin Reserve in  Hamilton.