The batter, who has been out of action since the conclusion of the Indian Premier League 2022, could not make it to India’s 15-man ODI squad for the Zimbabwe tour due to fitness. The Men in Blue are set to play three ODIs starting from August 18.
While the management was expected to give chances to fringe players for the tour, a few reports had suggested Virat Kohli and Rahul would be part of it to regain form and fitness. Kohli has been rested, but the bigger question circles around Rahul’s fitness, who hasn’t played any cricket since the IPL 2022, where he has captained Lucknow Super Giants.
The 30-year-old wicket-keeper batter has been marred with injuries this year. He was appointed the stand-in captain of the Indian team for the five-match T20I series against South Africa at home, but a groin injury ahead of the first game ruled him out. He then missed the tours of Ireland and England as he was recovering from a surgery in June.
Rahul was included in the squad for the ongoing five-match T20I series against West Indies but was tested Covid-19 positive on July 21, forcing him out of the series. Rahul took to Twitter to clear the air surrounding his fitness and availability.
“Unfortunately, as I was nearing a return to full fitness, I tested positive for COVID-19. This naturally pushes things back by a couple of weeks, but I aim to recover as quickly as possible and be available for selection as soon as I can,”
he wrote.
The player has missed a concerning number of matches this year due to fitness reasons. At the end of the Zimbabwe tour, India will have played 41 matches across three formats in 2022, and Rahul has been part of only six of those. India will hope the batter regains his fitness for the T20 World Cup in October.
