Although Suryakumar Yadav’s recovery is proceeding as planned, it is still unclear if he will be ready to play in the Mumbai Indians’ opening two IPL 2024 games. The possibilities are limited based on the right-handed batter’s current situation. After being out since December of last year, Surya is presently receiving rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru. His sports hernia required surgery, and in January he underwent the procedure in Germany.
Starting on Sunday, March 24, two days after the opening match of the IPL 2024 between current champions Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore, the Mumbai Indians will take on Gujarat Titans, the runners-up from the previous season. For the world’s top T20 batter, it’s a race against time.
A BCCI insider claims that Surya may not receive permission from the NCA medical team to play in the opening two IPL games of this season.
Suryakumar Yadav’s recovery is proceeding as planned, but he might miss the first two games:
It is highly likely that Suryakumar Yadav will ‘Return to Play’ in the IPL as his recovery progresses as planned. On condition of anonymity, a BCCI source informed PTI that it is still unclear if the NCA’s Sports Science and Medical Team will grant permission to play in the first two away games against Gujarat Titans and Sunrisers Hyderabad (March 27).
According to Surya’s Instagram account, he has been spotted performing a lot of strength and conditioning (S&C) exercises, but he hasn’t yet shared any of his batting workouts, which will show how he is progressing. On December 14, Suryakumar Yadav played in a Twenty20 international match against South Africa. He was unable to attend the DY Patil T20 Cup, when Ishan Kishan and Hardik Pandya made their comebacks.
“There are still 12 days to go before MI play their first game but it could be a race against time to get fit by the first match itself,” stated a source.
Surya last appeared in public at Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant’s pre-wedding events in Jamnagar.
With a strike rate of 171 or above and 2,141 runs in 60 T20 matches, Surya is the most important player in India’s T20 lineup. To his credit, he has four T20I hundreds. Following the ODI World Cup, he also guided India to a victory in the home T20I series against Australia.
Surya’s performance will determine a lot of India’s chances in the Americas (USA and West Indies) T20 World Cup. And even in the event that MI’s campaign is successful, Surya’s early availability is critical.
