New Delhi, Dec 28 Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) Secretary Unmesh Khanvilkar said the association will speak to India batter Shreyas Iyer regarding his availability for the later stages of the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy.
Iyer has been at the BCCI Centre of Excellence (CoE) since December 25 for further assessment of his recovery from a serious spleen injury suffered during the third ODI against Australia at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) in October.
“No, we have not spoken to Shreyas yet. But we will speak to him about his availability. As of now, there is no official confirmation on this. But it may come in the next few days from him,” Khanvilkar told IANS on Sunday.
A day before arriving at the CoE in Bengaluru, IANS had reported that Iyer resumed batting after restarting lightweight gym training. He batted for nearly 30-34 minutes at the Cricket Club of India (CCI) nets in Mumbai.
A source tracking Iyer’s recovery said if all goes well and the clearance from CoE comes, Iyer could play for Mumbai in the Vijay Hazare Trophy matches in Jaipur on January 3 and 6, respectively.
It would be interesting to see if the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee picks Iyer in the squad for three ODIs against New Zealand, starting in Vadodara on January 11. The Agarkar-led panel is set to meet to select the squad in the first week of January.
“The progress of Shreyas in CoE has been good so far. He’s targeting maybe the last two Vijay Hazare Trophy games to return to playing action. It’s up to selectors now to decide on his return to the ODI team,” further said the source.
If Iyer returns to the ODI set-up, it will be a major boost for the side looking to firm up their plans for the 2027 World Cup. Following the series opener in Vadodara, India, New Zealand will play the next two ODIs in Rajkot and Indore on January 14 and 18, respectively.
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