Deepak Chahar to undergo scans to determine extent of hamstring injury

Deepak Chahar will undergo scans this week to determine the extent of the left-hamstring injury he sustained during Chennai Super Kings' seven-wicket win over Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium on Saturday night.

Chahar, the leader of Super Kings' seam attack, pulled up injured after five balls of his first over before receiving treatment from Tommy Simsek, the franchise's long-serving physio, who appeared to tape up his left hamstring.

He completed his over, tentatively bowling a 73mph/118kph half-volley which was hit for four by Rohit Sharma, but was then replaced by substitute fielder Subhranshu Senapati for the rest of the innings. During Super Kings' run chase, Chahar was replaced by Ambati Rayudu under the Impact Player rule.

Chahar has struggled with injuries over the last 18 months, and admitted recently that he had found it "mentally… very tough" to deal with missing so much cricket. "Chahar will undergo scans to identify the extent of the injury once the team returns to Chennai," the franchise said in a statement on Sunday.

Ben Stokes, Chennai's INR 16.5 crore buy at December's auction, was ruled out of Saturday night's game with what the franchise described as "a minor toe injury", which is understood to be unrelated to his ongoing left knee issue.

Stokes travelled to the ground with the rest of the squad on Saturday night but only played a minor role in the warm-ups. "Stokes played Chennai Super Kings' first two matches of IPL 2023 before injuring his toe during training ahead of the third game, which the Super Kings won by seven wickets," the franchise said. "The Chennai Super Kings medical staff are closely monitoring both the players and will provide all support necessary for their recovery."

Moeen Ali, who missed Saturday's game because of illness, is also expected to be available again soon. Chennai's next fixture is on April 12, at home to Rajasthan Royals.