Patidar resumes batting as he recovers from finger injury

Rajat Patidar, the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) captain, has resumed batting following a recovery from a finger injury on his right hand that needed ten days to heel. He had picked up the injury while fielding against Chennai Super Kings on May 3.

Patidar started with mild throwdowns before testing his entire range of batting movements as RCB resumed training on Thursday evening, two days ahead of their clash against KKR. With a little bit of taping, he strode out to the nets and batted for over 30 minutes, seemingly unhindered by the right hand. Patidar didn't, however, field or take catches.

If Patidar is deemed fit to play, it will come as a massive boost for RCB in their quest to finish in the top-two. RCB are currently second on the points table with eight wins in 11 games, and need at least two wins to assure themselves of a top-two finish - something they've never achieved since 2016.

Patidar's availability will also somewhat cover up for Devdutt Padikkal's absence at No. 3. The left-hander has been ruled out of the remainder of the tournament with a hamstring injury, with the franchise bringing in Mayank Agarwal, primarily an opener, as his replacement. They also won't have the services of Jacob Bethell for the playoffs due to international commitments.

Patidar's form has somewhat tailed off after a sensational start - 23 is his highest score across his last five innings. So far this season, his first as captain, Patidar has hit 239 runs in 10 innings at a strike rate of 140.58. His most-recent half-century, a 32-ball 64 in a winning cause against Mumbai Indians, came more than a month ago.