Virat Kohli suffers injury scare ahead of first T20I against Sri Lanka

Team India suffered a big injury scare on the eve of the first T20I against Sri Lanka with their talismanic captain Virat Kohli coping a hit on his little finger. Virat Kohli and his teammates were training at the Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati when he suffered the blow. He got injured while taking a catch and was seen grimacing in pain straight away.

The Indian physio soon attended him and was seen applying magic spray on fingers of the star batsman. The injury did not look much serious and Virat Kohli is more than likely to play the first game as India will be looking to start 2020 on a winning note. The Men in Blue will be the favourites to win the first game as well as the series against Sri Lanka.

Meanwhile, allrounder Ravindra Jadeja was also not present during the training session but the reason behind it was not an injury. The Saurashtra star could not attend the training as he arrived late in Guwahati according to NDTV Sports. The three-match series will also mark the return of India’s pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah. The right-arm pacer is gearing up to play his first competitive game since the tour of West Indies last year.

He was a part of the team for the home Test series against South Africa before a back injury ruled him out. Thus, Bumrah is still waiting to play his first Test at home. Fortunately, he did not need surgery on his troublesome back and would be looking to hit the ground running against the Islanders.

New opening combination for the series:

With first-choice opener and vice-captain Rohit Sharma given a much-needed rest for the series, India will have a new opening combination for the T20I series. Veteran Shikhar Dhawan will partner in-form KL Rahul at the top of the order. Dhawan is returning to action after missing the T20I and ODI series against West Indies due to an injury on his knee.

With KL Rahul in great form at the moment, Dhawan will be desperate to do well against Sri Lanka and remain ahead of his younger teammate in the pecking order. A failure in the forthcoming series could make things worse for Dhawan who has struggled to do well in recent months.