Prasidh Krishna doubtful for third ODI after hamstring injury clouds India's Guwahati win
India's commanding victory in the second ODI against West Indies in Guwahati on Wednesday may have come at a cost, with leading seamer Prasidh Krishna nursing a hamstring injury that makes him doubtful for the third and final ODI in Chandigarh on Saturday (October 3).
A short evening's work in a high-scoring contest
Prasidh, India's standout bowler in the series so far, managed only five overs in the batter-dominated second ODI before walking off the field. Opening the attack, he bowled four overs on the trot before returning for the 31st over for his second spell — a spell that lasted just one over. He did not bowl again, finishing with figures of 1 for 45 from his five overs.
He has since been diagnosed with a hamstring injury. According to sources, the exact extent of the injury is not yet clear, but the immediate assessment does not appear particularly reassuring. There is a real possibility he could be sidelined for longer than initially thought, beginning with the remainder of the current series.
Scan to determine the damage
After the match, batting coach Sitanshu Kotak confirmed the pacer was dealing with a hamstring concern and said the team management was keeping a close watch on him.
"They probably will scan him tomorrow," Kotak said.
However, the immediate news on the seamer is not encouraging — he may be out of the series and beyond. How many matches he will ultimately miss is not yet known, but the early signs point to a layoff.
Dhir plugged the gap, but he too had a scare
With Prasidh off the field, Naman Dhir was called upon to bowl 6.1 overs to make up for the absence of the frontline seamer. Dhir, too, had earlier walked off the field, though Kotak downplayed that episode, describing it as a cramp.
New Zealand tour in the balance
There is one silver lining for India: since Prasidh is not part of the five-match T20I series that follows the ODIs, he has some additional time to recover. The bigger question, though, is whether he will be available for the away series against New Zealand, which gets underway with the T20Is on October 22.
With only a limited recovery window between now and then, there is a distinct possibility that Prasidh could miss a part of the New Zealand series, leaving India's pace resources stretched at the start of a demanding away tour.