Royal Challengers Bangalore all-rounder Washington Sundar has been ruled out of phase 2 of the IPL 2021 due to a finger injury. The Bengal medium-pacer, Akash Deep will be seen as a replacement for Washington in the squad.
The Indian all-rounder suffered an injury just before the five-match Test series against England while playing a practice game between County Select XI and the Indians. He suffered an injury on his finger on the right hand when he was hit by a sharp lifter from Mohammed Siraj during the practice match.
RCB in their statement said, “Royal Challengers Bangalore’s all-rounder Washington Sundar has been ruled out of the remainder of the IPL 2021 due to a finger injury. Akash Deep, a state cricketer from Bengal and net bowler with the franchise has been named as replacement.”
“The move reiterates the focus RCB has on grooming and nurturing young players as the team continues to develop exceptional talents and create a pathway for young talents to find their way into IPL and Indian Cricket,” the statement added.
The 24-year-old Akash Deep from Bengal made his T20 debut in March 2019 and has bagged 21 scalps in the shortest format of the game. His best haul of 4 for 35 came against Hyderabad in the Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy this year.
Earlier, RCB had named English pacer George Garton as a replacement for Kane Richardson for the remainder of IPL 2021. They also brought in Sri Lanka’s Wanindu Hasaranga as a replacement for Australia’s Adam Zampa.
The Bangalore franchise also sees a change on the coaching side as RCB’s head coach Simon Katich has stepped down due to personal reasons. Mike Hesson will be stepping in to complete the duties of head coach for the remaining season.