Young India batter Sai Sudharsan could be side-lined for more than a month after sustaining a rib fracture during a recent Vijay Hazare Trophy game against Madhya Pradesh, a BCCI source said on Friday. Sudharsan, who isn't a part of India's white ball set-up, fractured the "anterior cortex of seventh right rib" while completing a diving run in Tamil Nadu's VHT game against Madhya Pradesh in Ahmedabad.
The 24-year-old is unlikely to be fit for Tamil Nadu's remaining Ranji Trophy games but a more realistic possibility remains that he will be available for Gujarat Titans in the IPL.
According to sources, Sudharsan reported to the Centre Of Excellence in Bengaluru on December 29 and a scan report mentioned "a slender, fracture of the anterior cortex of the right seventh rib." The area where he sustained the fracture was the same spot where he got hit during a net session earlier in the tournament.
According to a COE report, "Sai is undertaking lower-body strength and conditioning work with appropriate protection to the injured rib to facilitate healing, and he has responded well to the program.
"Upper-body training will be introduced once acute symptoms settle over the next 7-10 days, following which he will be gradually progressed into a structured upper-body strength and conditioning program," the report stated.
It is understood that an injury like this normally takes six to eight weeks to heal.
Sudharsan has had a difficult run in Tests after failing to come good in nine of his 11 innings.
