Mumbai Indians batter Rohit Sharma walked off retired hurt during the game against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) on Sunday. MI are set to face the Punjab Kings at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Thursday (April 26) and the five-time champions are fretting over the recovery of their former captain.
Rohit underwent scans for a hamstring injury on Monday, but according to a report in Cricbuzz, there is no information on it at the moment. However, the report also suggests that there is no conclusive evidence of anything severe that could force the veteran to sit out for too many matches this season. Having said that, suspense remains on his availability for the PBKS clash tomorrow.
With no evidence of a tear in his hamstring, it remains to be seen if MI will take a chance of playing Rohit as an impact player for the next few matches. But then, the experienced batter skipped the nets session on Tuesday. In fact, he didn't even travel to the Wankhede Stadium for practice, leaving everyone worried about his fitness. As of now, it seems very likely that Rohit will at least miss the next game, as even he would be keen on not aggravating any kind of injury, with his main aim being staying fit for the ODI World Cup in 2027.
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However, his absence means the Mumbai Indians will have to look for another opener. Typically, the franchise has used Naman Dhir at the top of the order for stop-gap arrangements. MI could even unleash a 22-year-old Danish Malewar from Vidarbha who bats at the top of the order. He did well in the Vidarbha Pro T20 League last year, scoring 318 runs in just six matches at an average of 79.5 and a strike rate of 161.42. He also smashed an unbeaten 120 off just 55 balls in one of the matches. It remains to be seen if the five-time champions rest Rohit and give chance to the youngster in the next game.
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