Instead of flying with the Indian team from Dubai to Sydney on Wednesday, Rohit Sharma, who led Mumbai Indians to their fifth Indian Premier League title on Tuesday, will be heading back to India to recover from the hamstring injury he suffered during the T20 tournament, according to a report on ESPNcricinfo.
It’s been a turbulent month or so for Rohit ever since he injured his left hamstring on October 18 during IPL 2020 in the United Arab Emirates. The injury forced him to sit out for four matches, which led to the Indian selectors initially leaving him out of all three squads for the upcoming tour of Australia.
However, Rohit took the field for MI’s last league stage match as well as the first Qualifier. Then, on the eve of the final on Tuesday, the Board of Control for Cricket in India put out a media release that stated the 33-year-old has been included in the Test squad for the series Down Under but will be rested for the T20I and ODI series.
Now, after playing in the final and top-scoring for his team, Rohit will be heading first to India where he will undergo his rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru. And only after clearing a fitness Test will he be allowed to travel to Australia.
India will play three One-Day Internationals, three T20Is and four Test matches Down Under from November 27 and January 19. The first Test will begin on December 17 in Adelaide.