CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu left-arm pacer T Natarajan, who featured in the Syed Mushtaq Ali final against Karnataka, has sustained a knee niggle and will head to the NCA (National Cricket Academy) in Bengaluru for rehabilitation. Natarajan's troubled knee saw him miss the quarterfinal and semifinal of the T20 tournament, but he featured in the summit clash on Monday.
The rehabilitation in NCA means that he will miss the upcoming Vijay Hazare Trophy where Tamil Nadu's matches will be held in Thiruvananthapuram. "He is going to NCA for rehabilitation and we aren't sure as to how long he will be out of action. It's a big loss for the Tamil Nadu side ahead of the tournament," said a source close to the development.
It is a big blow for Natarajan who had undergone a knee surgery earlier this year after playing two games for Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Vijay Shankar to lead: Vijay Shankar, who captained Tamil Nadu in the Syed Mushtaq Ali tournament, will be leading the side in the Vijay Hazare trophy as well. N Jagadeesan has been named as his deputy. The side will be bolstered by the return of Dinesh Karthik and Washington Sundar. "Vijay Shankar has led the side admirably in the Syed Mushtaq Ali tournament and it was only natural that he will be given an extension in that role," said a TNCA official. It is learned that B Aparajith, currently in South Africa with the India 'A', would join the squad at a later date.
Squad: Vijay Shankar (captain), N Jagadeesan (vice-captain), Dinesh Karthik, C Hari Nishaanth, M Shahrukh Khan, R Sai Kishore, M Ashwin, Sandeep Warrier, Washington Sundar, M Siddharth, B Sai Sudharsan, V Ganga Sridhar Raju, M Mohammed, J Kousik, P Saravana Kumar, L Suryapprakash, B Indrajith, Sanjay Yadav, M Kaushik Gandhi, R Silambarasan
