IPL 2021: T Natarajan ruled out of the tournament due to knee injury

Sunrisers Hyderabad have suffered a huge blow as their talisman fast bowler T Natarajan has been ruled out of IPL 2021 due to knee injury.

It has been reported that the left-arm pacer has aggravated his knee injury and he will undergo rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore.

SRH’s mentor VVS Laxman and team’s director Tom Moody had earlier revealed that Natarajan had a sore knee and thus he was rested. Natarajan hasn’t played in the team’s last two matches and played his last game on 11th April against Kolkata Knight Riders.

Natarajan was the find for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the previous season as he had scalped 16 wickets in as many matches and had impressed with his ability to bowl accurate yorkers.

Thus, Natarajan had received his maiden call-up in the national squad on the back of impressive performances in the IPL and went on to make his debut in all the three formats of the game. Natarajan had impressed across the formats and even ended as the leading wicket-taker of three-match T20I series with six scalps.

Sources have confirmed that the pacer is now asked to report back to the NCA.

“We have not got the full report but we have been told that he has developed a strain in the knee. He will have to undergo rehab in the NCA,” said the source.

SRH captain David Warner had earlier said, “He has obviously got a sore knee. Given the circumstance in these bubbles, if he goes and gets a scan, he obviously has to sit out for seven days. He has to get back in quarantine. We are just monitoring him at the moment. The physios are doing their best to analyse from a face point of view but he obviously has to go out and get a scan at some point”.

Meanwhile, Sunrisers Hyderabad got off to a poor start as they lost their first three matches. However, they registered their first win against Punjab Kings in their last game. SRH will play their next match against Delhi Capitals at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai on 25th April.