Agarkar unfit, Munaf recovering

Ajit Agarkar’s torn groin muscle has ruled him out of the game for at least three weeks.

Ajit Agarkar’s torn groin muscle has ruled him out of the game for at least three weeks. But after a week’s silence, the first few words are out on the other bowling injury that may affect India’s chances in the three-Test series that’s coming up.

Munaf Patel, who has been hobbling around in sandals after that ankle injury during the Durban one-dayer on November 22, was finally seen walking confidently in sports shoes last night. And the latest line is this: there’s nothing sinister about his ankle injury, it’s a “bruise” that only time and rest can heal.

Munaf, who has not played an active role in nets so far, will stay on with the team, and may even play the first Test starting December 15 here – if the pain subsides by then. It could be alright in four days or eight, everything depends on the symptoms, and the 23-year-old’s confidence.

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Munaf, India’s strike bowler during the West Indies Test series, is himself eager to get back on the field, waving away any suggestions of a long lay-off. But the big call will be taken by team physio John Gloster, and the Indians are hoping the thumbs-up will come well in time.

Agarkar, of course, was not picked for the Tests, but his chances of playing any domestic cricket in the near future are quite thin.