Shankar, Kedar miss out on warm-up match

Vijay Shankar

In the warm-up match against New Zealand at the Oval, India could have involved all their 15 players to prepare them for the World Cup. Despite having that option and the batting failing big time, India could not utilise the services of two of their batsmen, Vijay Shankar and Kedar Jadhav.

Though Jadhav has recovered from the injury he suffered during the IPL and is "fully fit", the team management did not want to take chance with him in an unofficial game. They wanted to give him more time to recover to full fitness. After performing some drills, he batted in the nets on Friday without any discomfort. The team management is likely to give him an opportunity in the Cardiff match.

As for Shankar, he was not fit for this match after he was struck on the right forearm by Khaleel Ahmed in the nets on Friday. The good news is that he has no fracture which was confirmed after scans. The team management said they are monitoring his rehab and recovery. "As of now we cannot confirm whether he will be able to play in Cardiff. But he is recovering fast and there is no danger of him missing on the World Cup," a BCCI statement said.

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