In another injury blow to Gujarat Titans, batter Robin Minz is all but ruled out of the Indian Premier League 2024, head coach Ashish Nehra confirmed on Saturday, March 16.
The 21-year-old wicketkeeper batter was signed by the IPL 2022 champions for a whopping fee of INR 3.4 crore but the Jharkhand star suffered a bike accident in Ranchi on March 3. Minz was initially tipped to miss the opening few games of the tournament but Nehra confirmed the player's unavailability for the entire IPL 2024.
"Robin is unlikely to play IPL this year," Nehra told mediapersons in Ahmedabad on Saturday. "It is unfortunate but we were also excited about a guy like Minz."
Apart from Minz, Nehra also provided an update on star Afghanistan spinner Rashid Khan's availability. Rashid made his injury return after three months during the first T20I game against Ireland on Friday, boosting Gujarat Titans' bowling attack significantly ahead of IPL 2024.
When asked about Rashid's recovery, Nehra pointed out Gujarat's spin attack in the form of Jayant Yadav and Sai Kishore and added that his team is ready for the slow tracks in Chennai and Lucknow.
"Sai Kishore didn't play (much) last year, but he has been doing so well. So every year you will be seeing new guys, you have to believe in yourself and prepare for that. About spinners, it's not that we don't have experienced spinners. We have Jayant Yadav and Sai Kishore. I am a firm believer of playing to your strengths. In Chennai and Lucknow, there will be slow tracks and we need to be prepared," Nehra added.
Gujarat Titans' squad for IPL 2024: Shubman Gill (c), Kane Williamson, Abhinav Manohar, David Miller, Matthew Wade (wk), Vijay Shankar, Jayant Yadav, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Rashid Khan, Josh Little, Noor Ahmad, Rahul Tewatia, Darshan Nalkande, R Sai Kishore, B Sai Sudharsan, Mohit Sharma, Azmatullah Omarzai, Umesh Yadav, Shahrukh Khan, Sushant Mishra, Kartik Tyagi, Manav Suthar, Spencer Johnson, Robin Minz
