India’s World Cup prospects have been hit by the news their opener Shikhar Dhawan has been ruled out of the rest of the tournament with a fractured thumb.
Dhawan, who was injured after being hit by a Pat Cummins delivery during his 109-ball innings of 117 against Australia at the Oval, will be replaced in the squad by Rishabh Pant.
His place against Pakistan was filled by KL Rahul, who together with Rohit Sharma posted 136 for the first wicket. India next face Afghanistan on Saturday before matches against West Indies, England, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. They are unbeaten so far, defeating Australia, South Africa and Pakistan while their game against New Zealand was a washout, but Dhawan’s loss will be keenly felt. The Board of Control for Cricket in India tweeted: “Shikhar Dhawan has been diagnosed with a fracture of the first metacarpal on his left hand following a ball-impact injury during the team’s first match versus Australia at the Oval on 5 June 2019. Following several specialist opinions he will remain in a cast until the middle of July and therefore will not be available for the remainder of CWC19.”
Meanwhile deep rifts in the Afghanistan camp have emerged after Phil Simmons, the head coach, expressed his frustration with the chief selector, Dawlat Ahmadzai. Simmons has responded to Ahmadzai blaming the coaching staff for a lack of preparation following five successive defeats, including Tuesday’s 150-run demolition by England at Old Trafford.
The 56-year-old former Trinidad all-rounder and West Indies coach, who will leave his role with Afghanistan after the tournament, has taken exception to the claim and threatened to reveal Ahmadzai’s influence on the underwhelming campaign and particularly the decision to replace Asghar Afghan with Gulbadin Naib as captain in April.
“I am in the middle of a World Cup and trying to get our team to perform to the level we expect,” Simmons posted on Twitter. “But at the end of the World Cup I will tell the Afghanistan people about the part that Mr Dawlat Ahmadzai had to play in our preparation and his part in the dismissal of #AsgharAfghan.”
It comes as Headway, the brain injury association, has expressed its concerns about cricket’s response to head trauma following Hashmatullah Shahidi’s decision to bat on after being hit on the helmet against England.
Hashmatullah turned his back on a 92mph bouncer from Mark Wood and was immediately felled. The Afghanistan batsman revealed medical staff who assessed him in the middle advised him to leave the field but he declined, batting on for an extended period to top-score for his side with 76.
Peter McCabe, the chief executive of Headway, finds it troubling he was allowed to do so and suggested the decision should not lie with the individual. “These comments are very worrying and again show a distinct lack of understanding about the dangers of concussion as well as troubling insight into the lack of authority some team doctors seem to have,” he said. “Players need to take the advice of doctors and adhere to the protocols rather than follow a misguided sense of duty to their teammates which could result in a serious, possibly lifelong, injury.”
