Mumbai Indians are sweating over the fitness of Suryakumyar Yadav ahead of the new Indian Premier League (IPL 2024) season with the batter yet to recover from his hernia surgery.
Surya failed his fitness test at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru and will have to take it again at a later date to get the clearance to play.
A source privy to Suryakumar Yadav's case at the NCA told IANS, "He failed to pass the fitness test on Tuesday. We will have another fitness test for him on Thursday and if he passes, then only he can feature in the IPL."
Surya has been out of action since January when he went under the knife for a sports hernia issue.
SKY to miss start of IPL 2024
It was earlier being reported that Surya will miss few matches in IPL 2024 but now it seems that he could be ruled out of at least the first two games, if not more at the beginning of the tournament.
MI's opening match is against Gujarat Titans on March 24 and Surya's latest Instagram story is worrying fans over his availability in the tournament this season. He posted a heartbreak emoji on Tuesday which led fans to speculate over his future.
Boucher gives update on SKY
MI's new coach Mark Boucher on Monday addressed the issue of Surya during the team's pre-season press conference.
"We are eagerly awaiting updates on Suryakumar from the BCCI. While fitness challenges have been a persistent issue, we trust our world-class medical team.
"We may encounter some setbacks due to fitness concerns, but in the realm of sports, we must persevere," Boucher told reporters on Monday.
Big blow for MI
SKY's last cricket match was a T20I against South Africa on December 14. He was unable to participate in the DY Patil T20 Cup, which marked the return of Hardik Pandya and Ishan Kishan.
MI will be dealt with a body blow if Surya doesn't recover in time for the league. He has amassed 3249 runs from 139 T20s in the IPL which includes a hundred and 21 fifties.
