Sai Sudharsan Eyes Sri Lanka Return

Sai Sudharsan, who was conspicuously absent when the Indian squad left Mumbai for Sri Lanka on Tuesday (August 4), is likely to join his colleagues in Colombo by Saturday (August 8).

Currently recovering from a minor niggle, the left-hander is set to rejoin the group well before the first Test on August 15.

According to Cricbuzz, Sudharsan had told close pals that he will fly overseas ‘later this week’. It has now been revealed that he may go to the island during the weekend, missing the three-day warm-up match starting on Friday (August 7).

Sudharsan (24) is said to be nursing a niggle in his big toe.

However, he has resumed batting at the Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru and is anticipated to get the go-ahead from the CoE’s medical experts to join the squad on the island nation.

Sudharsan, a prolific white-ball batter, is also regarded as an important member of Shubman Gill’s Test squad, notably at No. 3. The Tamil Nadu and Gujarat hitter has played seven Tests and scored 383 runs at an average of 39, including three half centuries.

Meanwhile, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced that the Indian squad in Sri Lanka was joined by four net bowlers, as first reported by Cricbuzz. According to the BCCI, “Harsh Dubey, Shivang Kumar, Tanush Kotian and Vipraj Nigam have joined the Indian squad as net bowlers to assist the team in the build-up to the first Test against Sri Lanka.”

The Indian squad, however, held its first training session at the NCC Ground on Wednesday (August 5), one day after arriving in Sri Lanka. Following the three-day warm-up match in Colombo on August 9, the squad will head to Galle for the first Test. The second Test, which begins on August 23, will be contested in Colombo.