Ravichandran Ashwin to miss IPL 2017 due to sports hernia injury

India and Rising Pune Supergiants (RPS) star Ravichandran Ashwin will miss the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) owing to sports hernia.

Ashwin, who had undergone scans in Mumbai following the four-match Test series against Australia, is likely to be ruled out for six-eight weeks.

The all-rounder, however, is expected to be back for the ICC Champions Trophy in the summer. Sports hernia is a strain or tear of any soft tissue in the lower abdomen or groin area.

The development will come as a major blow to RPS, who will be aiming for the title after a disappointing debut season in 2016.

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Ashwin has been in a prolific run of form with the ball in recent months, playing a key role in India’s home Test season, where the Virat Kohli-led side won 10 of their 13 matches.

The 30-year-old off-spinner has had an unprecedented workload during the season that featured matches against New Zealand, England, Bangladesh and Australia.

During the period, Ashwin bowled 738.2 overs - the most ever by a bowler in a Test season - and picked up a record 82 wickets. The duo of Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja claimed 153 wickets at an average of 24.14 to become the most successful bowling pair in a season.

Ashwin first got injured immediately after the Test series against England in December. He soon withdrew from Tamil Nadu’s Ranji Trophy semi-final clash against Karnataka.

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In fact, in the first Test of the season, against New Zealand at Kanpur in September last year, Ashwin had bowled despite the pain due to a corn in his middle finger.

Ashwin’s India teammate KL Rahul is also reported to likely miss the tournament, while Murali Vijay’s participation also is rumoured to be doubtful.

On the other hand, India skipper Virat Kohli will miss the initial phase of the tournament due to his shoulder injury, and as per a report in Wisden India, Ravindra Jadeja and Umesh Yadav will join him on the sidelines for the first few weeks.