Groin injury ends Krunal Pandya's Warwickshire stint
The injury is likely to keep the allrounder out of action for three weeks
ESPNcricinfo staff
22-Aug-2022
Krunal Pandya played five Royal London Cup matches for Warwickshire • Getty Images for Surrey CCC
A groin injury has cut short Krunal Pandya's stint with Warwickshire. The allrounder, who was signed by the county team for the Royal London One-Day Cup, is due to return to India on Monday evening.
Krunal picked up the injury while scoring 37 during Warwickshire's match against Nottinghamshire on August 17. He didn't come out to field during the second innings of the match, and also missed Warwickshire's next two games against Middlesex and Durham.
Consultation with doctors has revealed that the injury is likely to keep Krunal out of action for three weeks, leaving him unavailable for the knockout stages should Warwickshire reach them.
"It's frustrating to lose Krunal for the remainder of the tournament, but he leaves the club with our very best wishes," Warwickshire's director of cricket Paul Farbrace said in a statement issued by the county. "Krunal was an excellent role model around the group and I'm sure the younger members of the squad will have learnt a lot from him on and off the pitch.
"Due to the short turnaround, we won't be signing a replacement, however, I'm incredibly excited to see our squad build on Sunday's excellent win over Durham."
Krunal played five Royal London Cup matches for Warwickshire this season, scoring 134 runs at an average of 33.50, including an 82-ball 74 in the tied game against Surrey at The Oval. He picked up nine wickets at 25.00 with his left-arm spin, including successive three-fors against Sussex and Leicestershire.
Warwickshire currently sit in fifth place in Group A of the Royal London Cup, with nine points from seven games, just one point behind the four teams currently ahead of them.
Krunal was one of two Indian players signed by Warwickshire this season, the other being fast bowler Mohammed Siraj, who has been roped in for the closing stages of the County Championship Division 1 season.
The 31-year-old Krunal, who plays for Lucknow Supergiants in the IPL, is hoping to revive his international career, having last played for India during a tour of Sri Lanka in July 2021. He has played five ODIs and 19 T20Is so far.